Sporting vs. Barcelona: Score and Reaction from 2016 La Liga Match

Barcelona overcame a sluggish start Saturday to score a dominant 5-0 La Liga victory over Sporting Gijon at Estadio El Molinon.

Neymar netted a brace while Luis Suarez, Rafinha and Arda Turan also scored goals for Barca, which alleviated at least some of the attacking concerns that were raised after Lionel Messi suffered a groin injury Wednesday. The club announced he's expected to miss three weeks of action to recover.

Saturday's win moved Barcelona atop the league table for the time being. Real Madrid and Sevilla could each leapfrog the side depending on the results of their respective Matchday 6 games, though.

Although most of the discussion leading up to the fixture surrounded how the Blaugrana would perform without their dynamic forward, manager Luis Enrique expressed confidence Friday the star-studded squad could still compete an elite level, per BBC Sport.

"We've got more than enough resources to deal with [Messi's absence] and beat any team," Enrique said. "I think to win titles we need a full squad, while at the same time we do have to be able to deal with situations like this when they come up."

The initial returns didn't look promising. Barcelona struggled to develop any rhythm inside the attacking third for the first 20 minutes of the match. In fact, it was Sporting that generated most of the early chances, including a free kick from just outside the box after a Marc-Andre ter Stegen handball.

The Rojiblancos failed to capitalize on any of those opportunities to grab the lead, however, and the Barca offense finally came to life around the half-hour mark.

Suarez got Barcelona on the scoreboard first after a risky decision by Sporting goalkeeper Ivan Cuellar failed to pay off. The 'keeper rushed off his line to attack a bouncing lob pass from Turan, but a nifty touch by the Uruguayan striker put him in the clear and he easily slotted his shot in the open net.

WhoScored.com provided further details about the 29th-minute tally:

Rafinha made in 2-0 just three minutes later by completing a nice passing play with a short-side header past Cuellar. Neymar started the move with a perfect through ball for Sergi Roberto, who attacked the box before playing a simple cross for the Brazilian midfielder to finish.

Those are exactly the type of moments Enrique likely envisioned before making his comments about moving forward successfully without Messi for a couple weeks. There's still no shortage of talent capable of creating highlight-reel moments.

OptaJose passed along a note about the assist from Roberto:

FCB News commented on the tandem that teamed up for the second goal:

"

Roberto to Rafinha, and then a goal. Two players who's potential and versatility could make them undroppable throughout this season.

— FCB News (@FCBNewsRoom) September 24, 2016"

After some entertaining end-to-end action throughout the first 45 minutes, the pace of play calmed after the halftime break with Barca holding a commanding lead.

Any hope of a Sporting comeback faded after right back Alberto Lora saw red in the 74th minute after receiving his second yellow card.

TotalBarca remarked about the lazy, dangerous tackle that brought a premature end to the captain's match:

Barcelona turned on the afterburners from there. They scored three times, two by Neymar and one by Turan, in a seven-minute span starting in the 81st minute to erase any remaining doubt.

Sport English credited Denis Suarez for a fine assist as the Blaugrana put the final icing on the cake:

WhoScored.com showcased the final match statistics:

Looking ahead, Barcelona continue a busy stretch featuring seven matches in 22 days with a Champions League group-stage clash against Borussia Monchengladbach on Wednesday. They conclude the jam-packed slate with a league match against Celta Vigo on Oct. 2.

Even though Messi is expected to remain sidelined until the middle of October, the positive signs Saturday suggest Barca should keep rolling right along without him.

Meanwhile, Sporting's third consecutive defeat after a promising start to the campaign leaves them trending in the wrong direction. They will look to start getting back on track when they take on Deportivo La Coruna next Saturday.

Post-Match Reaction

Afterward, the club's official website passed along comments from Enrique, who didn't believe the side was quite as effective throughout the match as the final scoreline would suggest:

"

The result doesn't reflect what happened. It looks like it was an easy win but Sporting played an intense game, they prevented our attacking moves from flowing for most of the first half. We were weak at the start of the second half and weren't able to kill the game—the red card changed everything and from then on we were able to score another three.

"

He also discussed the looming lineup decisions for the final couple matches of a busy period without having Messi available for selection.

"I have different kinds of players and that gives me a lot of options," Enrique said. "Depending on who we are playing and the players I have available, I'll pick the ones that I think are right for the situation."