Barcelona vs. Elche: Winners and Losers from Copa Del Rey Game

Barcelona responded to the chaos of a tumultuous week at board level by thrashing Elche 5-0 in the Copa del Rey on Thursday.

Neymar scored twice in the first leg of the round of 16, and Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba also found the back of the net for the Catalan outfit.

Their performances were among the most impressive at Camp Nou, but some other displays caught the eye for entirely different reasons.

The following are the individual winners and losers from this encounter.

Winner: Neymar, Who Was Barcelona's Most Incisive Attacker

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Neymar scored his 15th and 16th goals of the season on Thursday, which means he has already scored more this season than he did all of last.

In the 35th minute, with Barcelona struggling to unlock the stubborn Elche defense, he timed his run perfectly to accept Luis Suarez's pass from the centre of the goalmouth before finishing past Elche goalkeeper Przemyslaw Tyton.

The Brazil captain then drew a penalty off Enzo Roco in the 45th minute, which led to Messi's score. In the 59th, he completed his brace with a powerful shot that took a deflection off Roco as it found the back of the net.

"Neymar and Messi both looking pretty lively," tweeted ESPN FC's Dermot Corrigan before the former's breakthrough goal.

Indeed, the combinations between the two players were at times breathtaking to watch.

Neymar was quoted by AS as saying:

"

I feel very happy because of the way the match went for the team and for me. We all produced a great match.

With the goals we took a step forward. I feel happy for Messi, Suarez and for me. We have to repeat it on Sunday against Atletico.

"

Loser: Damian Suarez, Who Was Overwhelmed on His Flank

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Elche set up to defend at Camp Nou, and it was Damian Suarez who found himself tasked with tracking not only Neymar but also Barcelona left-backs Jordi Alba and Adriano.

As harsh as it sounds, he came nowhere close to succeeding.

Neymar had the running of the 26-year-old until his exit in the 67th minute, but Alba, too, gave the right-back fits as he overlapped with his attacking teammates.

"Damian switched off at right-back, but Alba was alert to Messi's excellent through pass, and the finish was tidy too," commented Football Espana via Twitter.

Many of Barcelona's buildup plays began opposite Damian, who must have been relieved when the final whistle sounded.

Winner: Luis Suarez, Who Played One of His Best Matches for Barcelona

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Slowly but surely, Luis Suarez is establishing a relationship with fellow Barcelona forwards Neymar and Lionel Messi that, in time, could well be unstoppable.

It certainly was against Elche on Thursday, and the relationship between the three will prove vital in the chase for La Liga and Champions League titles this season.

After struggling to involve himself through much of the first half at Camp Nou, Suarez found himself on the end of a superb Sergi Roberto pass and proceeded to slip the ball laterally to Neymar, who one-touched it into the back of the net.

But the best was yet to come for the Uruguay international.

In the 40th minute, his exquisite touch brought him past his marker, and after cutting inside the next Elche defender, he smacked an accurate shot past Tyton and into the near corner of the goal.

Loser: Enzo Roco, Who Had a Nightmare of an Evening

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Like many of his Elche teammates, Enzo Roco will have been eagerly anticipating the final whistle at Camp Nou on Thursday.

That said, he actually began his night well in defense and looked a decent match for Neymar until the latter's opener in the 35th minute.

Ten minutes later, his foul on the Barcelona forward inside the 18-yard box sent Messi to the spot, and the Argentine maestro made no mistake from 12 yards.

Roco's match would only get worse from there. Just prior to the hour mark, his body helped Neymar's shot on its way to the back of the net.

Winner: Lionel Messi, Who Pulled All the Strings for Barcelona

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Lionel Messi was here, there and everywhere for Barcelona on Thursday, whether dropping deep to dribble the ball downfield, delivering long, raking passes to teammates or bolstering his side's lead from the penalty spot.

He played with fire in his belly at Camp Nou, and Elche simply didn't have an answer for his dominance.

His through-ball that put Alba through to score was especially spectacular, but he also did well to pick out Luis Suarez ahead of the Catalans' second goal in the 40th minute.

"Messi's long-range passing [is] basically beyond any of the passing specialists of the past few decades," tweeted ESPN FC's Miguel Delaney. "Pirlo, Scholes, whoever, take your pick."

Loser: Ivan Rakitic, Whose Barcelona Struggles Continued

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Although Barcelona ended up cruising to a 5-0 win over Elche on Thursday, Ivan Rakitic continued to struggle in the centre of the park for the Blaugrana.

Time and again he gave the ball away cheaply, and it was almost in spite of him that his teammates were able to secure such a resounding result.

In the 71st minute, he delivered a free-kick that sailed harmlessly past the far post, nowhere near any fellow Barcelona player.

It was a moment that rather summed up his night.