Barcelona vs. Guangzhou Evergrande: Winners and Losers from FIFA Club World Cup
Barcelona booked their spot in the FIFA Club World Cup final by seeing off Guangzhou Evergrande 3-0 in their semi-final.
The Spanish side dominated play throughout and only suffered the odd scare from set pieces from the Chinese Super League outfit, but once Luis Suarez pounced on a rebound to open the scoring in the first half, the Catalan team's progression was never in doubt.
After the break, Suarez made it 2-0 with a fantastic piece of link play between himself and Andres Iniesta before plundering his hat-trick goal from the penalty spot.
Here are all our winners and losers from the match.
Winner: Luis Suarez
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Luis Suarez was charged with leading the attack for Barcelona without his two trusted allies, Neymar and Lionel Messi—both of whom failed to make the game for fitness reasons.
The Uruguayan came up big, though, putting on a fine performance with his movement, skill and finishing touch to net all three of the game's goals.
His anticipation and ability to understand play developing quicker than the defence saw him notch the first from close range, while his own individualism and skill was to thank for the second.
Suarez secured his hat-trick with a confident penalty and was a star performer throughout.
Loser: Guangzhou Evergrade, a Level of Class Below Still
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The Chinese Super League side battled valiantly and were reasonably well organised tactically, but in terms of ball retention and quality in possession, there was a gulf between the sides.
Barcelona barely had to break out of second gear to open Guangzhou Evergrande up on numerous occasions, with an extra level of inventiveness and creativity about their play the CSL side simply couldn't match.
Big-money signings and wages are fine for the continued growth of the club on a domestic scale, but they clearly have some way to go to match Europe's finest.
Winner: Andres Iniesta
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Perhaps the best player on the park (most weeks, but particularly on this occasion), Andres Iniesta was a class apart with his first touch, vision and ability to open up gaps in the opposition defence.
He created countless opportunities for his team-mates to run in on goal with clever chipped passes, through balls and the agility to dribble around those foolish enough to try to challenge him.
Iniesta was given a tremendous ovation when substituted late on in the game for Sergi Samper.
Winner: Luis Enrique
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The Barcelona boss isn't going to win a sextuple because his team lost the Spanish Super Cup to Athletic Club, but five trophies in the space of seven months isn't bad, either.
Luis Enrique was able to give a few players a rest, work others back to fitness and progress in the competition without having to name either Lionel Messi or Neymar in his starting XI.
The boss looked pleased on the sideline with much of his team's direction of play and tempo, and he'll be confident the side is fully focused on lifting another trophy.
Winner: The Final Most Wanted and Expected
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Once again, it will be South America vs. Europe in the Club World Cup showpiece after River Plate and Barcelona made their way to the final.
The Club World Cup is usually seen as a chance for the CONMEBOL's best to show they can compete with or outwit UEFA's finest, and this will be another opportunity to do so, both on a club level and in the case of certain individuals—such as Matias Kranevitter, who will soon swap River for Atletico Madrid and be battling Barcelona on a more regular basis.
Name-wise and team-wise, this is the biggest final the competition could have hoped for and should serve to continue increasing its profile and interest in Europe in particular.
