Barcelona: Barcelona let slip an early 2-0 lead before struggling past 10-man Real Betis 4-2 in the Spanish league on Sunday after Lionel Messi scored his 32nd and 33rd goals of the season.
Three days before the Copa del Rey clash against Real Madrid, Pep Guardiola's team appeared set to cruise to another home victory after Xavi Hernandez and Messi gave the hosts a two-goal lead after just 12 minutes.
But Ruben Castro scored the first goal by a visitor at Camp Nou stadium in the league this season, and strike partner Roque Santa Cruz made it 2-2 in the 52nd.
Barcelona weren't able to regain control until Mario Alvarez left Betis a man down with his second booking in the 70th. Having set up two goals, Alexis Sanchez then scored the winner before Messi added a late penalty.
The Catalan giant's ninth win in 10 home games still leaves them five points behind leader Madrid in the league standings.
"Betis wanted the ball and played a good game," Xavi said. "Their game plan was fantastic. We saw an wide-open game with chances for both sides, but in the end we showed the mettle necessary to pull it out."
Madrid host Barcelona on Wednesday in the first leg of the Copa del Rey quarterfinals. The two legs will take the number of "clasico" matches to nine in nine months. Barcelona have been dominant, with Madrid's one win coming in the Copa final last season.
Elsewhere on Sunday, Atletico Madrid coach Diego Simeone won on his home debut as his new team beat Villarreal 3-0 thanks to Radamel Falcao's double.
Falcao broke through for a dominant Atletico in the 40th minute, and then scored his 11th league goal from the penalty spot in the 51st after he was fouled in the area. Diego capped the win in the 80th.
Also, it was: Osasuna 0, Racing Santander 2; Athletic Bilbao 3, Levante 0; and Sporting Gijon 2, Malaga 1.
Madrid came from behind to beat Mallorca 2-1 on Saturday, while third-place Valencia fell 1-0 at home to Real Sociedad.
Guardiola said he didn't think his team's shaky showing on Sunday would influence the match at the Santiago Bernabeu.
"The fact is that we figured out how to win and played a great last half hour," Guardiola said. "There are things that we have to improve, but it is a different competition and a different rival. We will look to rest and then go play the best game we can."
Barcelona paraded Lionel Messi's third Ballon D'Or award and their recently won Club World Cup trophy with their fans before the game.
Betis, however, were undeterred by their host's impressive home record and went out looking to take the game to the European champions. Following Espanyol's example from their 1-1 draw last weekend, Betis played an attacking game to try and beat the best attacking side in the world.
The promoted side's dare soon cost it dearly with Xavi celebrating his 400th league appearance by scoring. The goal came from Cesc Fabregas' rebound off the post after Alexis had played the former Arsenal captain into the area.
The Chile international also set up Barcelona's second goal two minutes later when he lofted in a cross for the charging Messi to redirect into the back of the net.
Yet whereas most of Barcelona's rivals would have rolled over, Betis continued to attack in waves while their pressure succeeded in short-circuiting Barcelona's passing game.
The strategy paid off in the 32nd when Castro turned Salva Sevilla's pass beyond goalkeeper Victor Valdes to halve Betis' deficit. Before that goal, Barcelona had outscored their league opponents at home 41-0.
Betis kept attacking after halftime, and Santa Cruz leveled with a precision shot from outside the area after catching Barcelona off-balance on the break.
"Keeping in mind that nobody had scored here and that we had options to win when we were 11 against 11, well, we have to be proud," Betis coach Pepe Mel said after his team had lost for the first time in four matches.
Barcelona finally reacted and claimed possession of the ball yet failed to break through Betis' disciplined defense until it had an extra man following Mario's exit.
Alexis marked his strong overall performance with a hard blast from the right edge of the box in the 75th that goalkeeper Casto Espinosa got a touch on but couldn't keep out of his net.
"(Alexis) allowed us to stretch the pitch, he is a very fast player," Guardiola said. "I have to congratulate him because he helped us a lot."
Messi scored from the penalty spot in the 86th after Jose Dorado had been penalized for handling in the area.
Comments
0 comment