Eibar vs. Barcelona: Winners and Losers from Liga Game
Barcelona went four points clear at the top of La Liga with a 2-0 win at Eibar on Saturday, with the Basque side suffering an eighth straight defeat in the process.
Argentinian No. 10 Lionel Messi was the man who did the damage, scoring a fiercely driven penalty in the first half and then a fine header after the break from a corner to give his side the points they wanted ahead of a big week of action for the Catalan club at home and abroad.
Here are all our winners and losers from the game in Spain.
Winner: Marc Bartra, Again
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Once again, Marc Bartra was superb for Barcelona when called upon in central defence.
While Gerard Pique and Javier Mascherano seem the first-choice pairing when everybody is fit, Jeremy Mathieu is still battling for a spot when Mascherano moves into midfield. With plenty of changes to the Barcelona XI for this match, Bartra came back in and once more impressed.
His reading of the game, recovery speed behind his fellow defenders, and his anticipation and timing to step out of the back line to make interceptions have all increased significantly this term. He really deserves more frequent starts than he currently gets.
It's a fair bet he won't start either of the next two games, against Manchester City and Real Madrid, but perhaps he should.
Loser: Barcelona's Midfield Trio
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None of Sergi Roberto, Ivan Rakitic or Rafinha can claim to be an absolute starter for Barcelona this season, despite the latter two frequently getting minutes. Indeed, they have largely been in contest with each other for a starting spot, so this was a chance for all three to have an impact.
While Barcelona certainly dominated play, and all three got on the ball, none really had a telling, killer impact in a match that was quite tight and crying out for a bit of invention at times.
Luis Enrique subbed Rakitic on the hour ahead of a big week, Roberto didn't suggest he deserves more game time and Rafinha, though neat and tidy, always seems capable of more than he gives the team.
Winner: Lionel Messi, Nuevo Pichichi
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Cristiano Ronaldo looked to be running away with the Pichichi, the top scorer of La Liga, earlier in the season. But his own dip in form along with Lionel Messi's surge in front of goal brought things level last week.
A penalty on the half-hour mark for Messi saw him rattle in his 31st of the campaign, taking him clear at the top for the first time with Real not playing until Sunday. The second half was as tight as the first, but again Messi made the difference, diving in for a header to double his tally for 2-0.
Some of his footwork down the left flank was sublime on the day, too, with Eibar not able to get close to him. On this occasion, it was most certainly Messi who made the difference.
Loser: Eibar's Lack of Goals
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The 2-0 result means Eibar are now up to eight successive defeats in La Liga.
Of course, they wouldn't have expected too much from this game, and anything they won would be a bonus on their plan for the season to stay up. But with games disappearing and them getting closer each week to the drop zone, they needed something positive here.
On the offensive side of things, they didn't get it. There was little support for Manu del Moral, a few half-hearted shots and certainly nothing to overly trouble Barca keeper Claudio Bravo. In this eight-game run, Eibar have managed just two goals.
Federico Piovaccari's entrance as sub brought an impressive cameo, but he summed up their quality in front of goal by shooting into the ground and onto the bar from six yards in the last minute.
Winner: Luis Enrique, Heading into a Big Week
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Barcelona boss Luis Enrique fielded his top three forwards, of course, but the rest of the team saw significant change. The defence welcomed Marc Bartra, Martin Montoya and Adriano, and Enrique changed around the midfield.
With the end result being a comfortable win, and Enrique able to sub off the likes of Rakitic and Neymar to further rest them, it was a pretty perfect outcome for the team and the boss ahead of a big week in the season of Barcelona.
The Champions League second leg against Manchester City will not be easy—despite the current lead Enrique's team has—before El Clasico next weekend. Barcelona go into the match with 16 wins in the last 17, top of the table and ready to challenge for serious silverware.
