Barcelona vs. Sevilla: Winners and Losers from La Liga Game
Barcelona beat Sevilla 5-1 at the Camp Nou on Saturday evening to close the gap on leaders Real Madrid on a night which saw Lionel Messi break La Liga's goalscoring record.
The No. 10 opened the scoring with a free-kick and went on to complete a hat-trick, with the second being the goal that gave him the record as the most prolific player ever in Spain's top flight. In between, Neymar and Ivan Rakitic also scored, with an own goal from Jordi Alba the only reply from Sevilla.
Here are all our winners and losers from the fixture.
Winner: Lionel Messi
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The day can only belong to Lionel Messi.
A free-kick into the top corner, a sprint forward that resulted in a sliding goal at the far post, before finally the hat-trick goal from a low drive into the bottom corner. Three goals, all of very different qualities, and in the process rewriting the history books: Lionel Messi is now the all-time top goalscorer of La Liga.
His all-round game was excellent after half-time, too, as Barcelona ran riot against Sevilla, making great use of space and punishing the away side on the break.
Barcelona head coach Luis Enrique was quoted by Joe Wright of Goal.com as saying, "I'm fortunate enough to be able to train him every day. I don't know if you can compare him with another player, he is unique."
He added, "It won't be repeated. We have the fortune to enjoy it. I like to live in the present and it is wonderful. For me, Messi is the best player ever."
Loser: Coke
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Sevilla were always going to be up against it at the Camp Nou, so they could have done without any of their back four really having an off night...but that's what they got with right-back Coke.
He had a torrid time; Neymar evaded him easily far too often, and when he did get close, the only response the Sevilla man had was to kick out. Offensively, he offered nothing and wasn't much better defensively in the second half.
The full-back did get booked but was lucky it was only one yellow by the end of the game, having made numerous fouls and cynical challenges that went unpunished. His petulance and frustration at the end of the 90 minutes summed up his performance.
Winner: Neymar
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The Brazilian has been peripheral at times for Barcelona this season, despite getting on the scoresheet plenty of matches.
Against Sevilla, though, he was excellent. Linking very well with Luis Suarez and Messi, he beat his man for fun and was always available to receive possession outside the box. He laid on a couple of goals for his team-mates and notched one himself, a fine header off a free-kick.
In this game, the forward showed off all the traits: dribbling ability, acceleration, good use of space and, of course, getting himself on the board with another goal.
Loser: Unai Emery
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The Sevilla boss has never managed a win against Barcelona—and that is still the case after this 5-1 thrashing.
It was always a club he struggled against at Valencia too, and although Sevilla went into the break only one goal down on Saturday, they never really looked like taking anything from the match. A few half-hearted counter-attacks aside, Sevilla were largely blunt on the day and didn't manage an effort on target.
They are still in the top-four race, but this game shows just how far off the top they really are.
Winner: Luis Suarez
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The third member of Barcelona's attack also gets a mention—all three were outstanding in the game.
Although he still hasn't hit the back of the net himself, Suarez is already showing what a valuable addition he will be this term and clocked up another assist with a great chip for Rakitic to score off. The Uruguayan surely would have notched his first had Messi not slid in to prod home the record-breaking strike just before Suarez was subbed.
Another hardworking, creative and vibrant display with end product from Suarez, and his goals will surely arrive soon.
