Rayo Vallecano vs. Barcelona: Score, Grades and Reaction from La Liga Game
La Liga leaders Barcelona recorded a hard-fought 2-0 win over Rayo Vallecano on Saturday, with Lionel Messi and Neymar scoring in quick succession in the first half.
Hosts Rayo finished the match with just nine players, and both clubs missed a series of chances to add to the score.
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Barcelona's Claudio Bravo came into this match just 21 minutes shy of setting a new La Liga record for the longest clean streak to start the season, and Alberto Bueno came close to ruining the occasion twice.
The 26-year-old first unleashed a shot from outside the box that required the Chile international to make a stunning save, before the Rayo man found some space on a cross and directed his header straight into the hands of Bravo.
The 21 minutes passed without any goals, however, as Bravo officially took over the record from former Blaugrana stopper Pedro Artola, via Infostrada Sports:
The hosts showed no fear of league leaders Barcelona, making for a highly entertaining first half. Neymar came just inches short of prodding home an inviting cross from Jeremy Mathieu, who made an excellent impression in his first start out wide, having previously played in a central role for the Catalans.
The club's Twitter account was impressed:
Messi thought he had opened the scoring after 31 minutes with an excellent rush, but he was called back for offside. Replays confirmed the Argentina international had strayed beyond the last defender, but only just.
Just minutes later, the star forward timed his run better, beating Tono to give the Blaugrana the lead.
The hosts were clearly rocked by the setback, and two minutes later, the situation got worse. Munir El Haddadi's pass gave Neymar a difficult angle to work with, but the Brazilian kept a cool head and finished expertly.
As shared by WhoScored.com, his finishing has really stood out early in the season:
The visitors nearly had a third as the Catalans again beat the offside trap, but El Haddadi failed to round Tono as the first half ended 2-0 in favour of Barcelona.
Javier Aquino made his way onto the pitch for the second half, and the Mexico international immediately added an extra dimension to Vallecano's moves forward. The hosts came out on the offensive, but the start of the second half saw no real chances.
Bueno could have done better with one of Aquino's crosses, failing to aim his attempt on target. Gerard Pique found himself in a similar position in the 56th minute, directing a free header over the crossbar off a corner.
Vallecano's task became that much harder when defender Jorge Garcia Morcillo ran into a second yellow card for a charge on Neymar, reducing the hosts to 10 men.
Barcelona looked to benefit from the man advantage as Mathieu found Pedro after a strong run, but the Spaniard's effort was cleared off the line. Ivan Rakitic came off the bench in the 69th minute and nearly added a third within minutes, but his volley was too central to trouble Tono.
Xavi isolated Messi in front of goal in the 82nd minute, but the Argentine put the ball over the bar from close range. Bueno had a chance to pull one back for the hosts with five minutes left to play, but the Spaniard failed to find the target from the edge of the box.
Rayo never looked like threatening Barca's lead after Morcillo's red card, and Aquino managed to collect his second yellow as well deep in stoppage time.
Grades
Claudio Bravo: A+
Bravo didn't have much work to do on Saturday, but with his record on the line, he came through in a big way to deny Bueno twice. Considering he set such a mark with Marc-Andre ter Stegen on the bench, the 31-year-old deserves some love.
Munir El Haddadi: C+
El Haddadi's talent is undeniable, but on Saturday, his age showed. On several occasions, he tried to dribble past opponents where he should have passed, and the one time he decided to do so, Neymar scored.
Alberto Bueno: C
The Rayo Vallecano forward was lively and received far too much space from the Barcelona defence at times, but his inability to convert one of his many chances really hurt his team in the end.
Attacking partner Leo Baptistao was invisible for most of the match, and Bueno failed to step up with the team's most prolific striker struggling.
Post-Match Reaction
Bravo refused to dwell on his phenomenal record, emphasising the importance of the team, via Barcastuff:
"Bravo: "Record of not conceding in the Liga? Team performance is more important. The main thing was to win." #fcblive
— barcastuff (@barcastuff) October 4, 2014"
Luis Enrique echoed that sentiment, conceding Saturday's match wasn't an easy one for Barca:
"Luis Enrique: "It was a difficult game from the start, but I'm happy. 7 games without conceding? Win more important than records." #fcblive
— barcastuff (@barcastuff) October 4, 2014"
Post-Match Outlook
Barcelona remain in the top spot in the standings, holding off a red-hot Valencia side that defeated Atletico Madrid 3-1 Saturday. A home match against Eibar is next on the schedule and presents another good chance at three points for the Blaugrana.
Rayo Vallecano will play Granada next, and they should take confidence from their admirable performance against the Catalans. The hosts gave it everything they had against a far bigger team, and their attacking style of play should trouble most of the La Liga contenders.
