Messi Fights Hard To Maintain League Title

Primera División

• March 12, 2016

• • 16:00

• • Camp Nou, Barcelona

• Referee: Pedro Jesús Pérez Montero

• • Attendance: 87533

Barcelona

• Juan Rodríguez 8' (own goal),

• Munir El Haddadi 19',

• Neymar 32', 51',

• L. Messi 40',

• A. Turan 57'

6

FT

0

Getafe

Best and Worst Player

Best Player

Goal Choice

L. Messi

Barcelona Position: Attacker

 

Worst Player

Goal Choice

Guaita

Getafe Position: Goalkeeper

Team Ratings

Barcelona

• 13 C. Bravo Didn't have his first save to make until just shy of the 70-minute mark in what was a quiet afternoon for him.
  
• 3 Piqué Never put a foot wrong at the back. He was an imposing figure, and an improvised flick saw him assist the sixth goal from Arda.
  
• 18 Jordi Alba Kick-started the Barcelona route, getting on the end of Messi's ball and rattling a cross in off Getafe midfielder Juan Rodriguez to open the scoring.
  
• 24 J. Mathieu Filled in admirably for the suspended Mascherano, appearing completely comfortable in defence before being replaced at the hour mark.
  
• 7 A. Turan A stunning overhead-kick beat Guaita at the near post for the sixth Barcelona goal. Moved the ball around well in midfield, assisting Messi's goal just before the interval.
  
• 22 Aleix Vidal Played some tidy passes over the top and made good runs off the ball to open up space for Messi.
  
• 8 Iniesta Engineered a number of attacks, and was consistently involved in the play, picking out passes early on in the build-up to each of the first two Barcelona goals. Replaced at the hour mark.
  
• 20 Sergi Roberto He could have worn Busquets' jersey and no one would have noticed the difference. Won the ball back brilliantly time and time again, including a remarkable tackle and run to kick-start the build-up to the third Barcelona goal.
  
• 17 Munir El Haddadi Did his best to replicate the movement and work ethic of Luis Suarez, and wasn't far off by any means. A valuable contributor in attack, heading home the second goal after a peach of a pass from Messi.
  
• 11 Neymar Returned from suspension with a vengeance. Moved brilliantly off the ball to make himself a consistent option in attack, twice getting behind the defence and finishing appropriately for a brace. Won a penalty as well inside of 10 minutes.
  
• 10 L. Messi An outstanding showing even by his remarkably high standards. Involved in all but the final Barcelona goal, assisting three while scoring a screamer of his own. His assist on Munir's goal was nothing short of world class, while he played Neymar behind the defence for both his strikes. His only blemish was a miss from the penalty spot.
  

Getafe

• 13 Guaita Left stranded so often, though he made a few impressive saves to prevent an even more embarrassing defeat, including a strong stop to deny Messi from the spot.
  
• 5 S. Vergini Allowed the hosts to get behind him time and time again as he came nowhere close to reading the balls played over the top by the likes of Messi and Iniesta.
  
• 2 Á. Pereira Struggled mightily to stay anywhere close to Messi, failing to track his runs and allowing him to run riot in the final third.
  
• 4 E. Velázquez Conceded a penalty inside of 10 minutes and his day only got worse from there. A shocking inability to read the game.
  
• 11 A. Yoda Unable or unwilling to track back. Whatever the reason, it wasn't good enough. Came to life a bit in the final 30 minutes as Barcelona slowed down a bit.
  
• 23 Medrán Couldn't provide Pereira the support needed to slow Messi, and was merely another ineffective green shirt in defence.
  
• 14 Pedro León The skipper couldn't help rally his troops as they fell behind early and packed it in straight away, showing little desire to fight back. Replaced after 55 minutes.
  
• 22 Juan Rodríguez Had no success trying to provide cover for the back line, and sliced the openeing goal for Barcelona into his own net.
  
• 32 E. Buendía Neymar continuosly got behind him, as the right-back's flank was left terribly exposed for the first and third Barcelona goals.
  
• 30 Wamberto The only player who showed a bit of confidence on the ball, as he was willing to try and dribble out from the back. Made a few decent runs, which is more than can be said for the rest of his team-mates.
  
• 12 S. Šćepović It goes without saying that service was non-existent. Had a thankless task up top as he never got so much as a sniff of goal. Replaced shortly into the second half.
  

Substitutes

• 23 T. Vermaelen Came off the bench with the game out of reach.
  
• 15 Bartra Replaced Pique for the final 20 minutes.
  
• 26 Sergi Samper Had 30 minutes on the pitch after replacing Iniesta, and worked the ball around well in attack.
  

Substitutes

• 21 Moisés Provided a decent threat off the bench, generating their best chance of the night and only real shot on target.
  
• 17 B. Mensah Late sub. Had no chance to make an impact.
  
• 18 Víctor Rodríguez Had little success trying to create after replacing Scepovic.