Barcelona vs. Real Betis: Score and Reaction from 2016 La Liga Match
Reigning champions Barcelona cruised to a win on the opening matchday of the 2016-17 La Liga season, beating Real Betis 6-2 at the Camp Nou. Luis Suarez notched a hat-trick in the win.
Arda Turan gave the Catalans an early lead, but Ruben Castro shocked the Camp Nou by equalising with a fine free-kick. Lionel Messi and Suarez restored order before half-time, however, and the Uruguayan doubled his tally after the break.
Messi added a fifth after 57 minutes, and the match petered out after that. There was still time for a sixth goal, however, as Suarez completed his hat-trick, and Castro also bagged another consolation goal late.
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As shared by Sport's Sam Marsden, Barcelona were missing a whole host of key contributors:
Barcelona started the season the way they were expected to, pushing up the pitch in search of a goal early. Ivan Rakitic sprang Suarez with a wonderful ball over the top after just three minutes, but the striker's touch failed him, and he couldn't challenge goalkeeper Antonio Adan.
Betis tried to play with the champions, but after just six minutes, they suffered their first setback. Messi picked out Jordi Alba, who played a fine cross into the path of Turan, and the Turk didn't miss.
Bleacher Report UK's Karl Matchett thought that didn't take long:
Unsurprisingly, the early deficit caused a real dent in Betis' confidence, and the team became very sloppy in possession. Barcelona gladly took advantage, and a major blowout appeared to be on the cards after 10 minutes.
Messi almost picked out Suarez with a through ball, with only a deflection saving the visitors, and another fine passing move between the two almost unlocked the Andalusian defence.
Betis continued their positive approach, however, and it led to a shocking equaliser after 21 minutes. Castro fired a beautiful free-kick past Claudio Bravo, who perhaps should have been able to make the save.
Per Squawka Football, it brought an end to a very solid defensive run for the Catalans:
The goal restored some of Betis' confidence, and the visitors tightened up defensively as a result, not giving away as many chances. Barcelona were furious they weren't given a penalty just minutes afterwards, as Suarez got tangled up with Aissa Mandi inside the box.
Messi hit the crossbar after a delightful combination with Alba, before Alba and Petros clashed in midfield, leading to some handbags between multiple players from both sides.
Jonas Martin left the field with an injury and was replaced by Dani Ceballos, and the youngster barely had time to touch the ball before Messi restored the lead with another vintage low strike from just outside the box.
Per WhoScored.com, no one in La Liga does those kinds of goals better than the Argentinian:
Just a few minutes later, Suarez made it 3-1, producing a clever finish in between two defenders after Sergi Roberto isolated him in front of goal. That would be the final major incident of an entertaining first half.
Barcelona continued their fine play after half-time, and Turan robbed Messi of a goal after just a few minutes. Adan slowed down his initial shot, which was still rolling toward goal and would have gone in, but the Turk gave chase from an offside position.
Rakitic then sent a shot flying just past the post, as Betis had nowhere to go. A fourth goal seemed inevitable, and it was Suarez who provided it, finishing off a beautiful counter-attacking move.
La Liga blogger Rafael Hernandez was impressed:
Not to be outdone by his attacking partner, Messi also added a second goal to his tally with a fantastic solo effort, as Saturday's contest turned into quite the show for the Blaugrana fans.
There was little that could detract from the incredible performance, although Suarez made a poor decision to lash out at an assistant after he tried to chase down a ball and was handed an unnecessary yellow card as a result.
Messi skied a free-kick from a promising position before the Catalans made a couple of substitutions and the tempo dropped. Barcelona seemed happy with the score, and Betis couldn't eat into the lead. Suarez did put Adan to work with a fizzling drive after 79 minutes, however.
The Uruguay international was determined to complete his hat-trick, and he did so with eight minutes left to play, bending home a fine free-kick.
And the match still wasn't finished, as Castro punished some sloppy defending to score his second goal of the night.
Post-Match Reaction
After the match, Blaugrana technical secretary Robert Fernandez confirmed the club is working on a deal to sell Bravo to Manchester City:
Barcelona's next outing will be in the Basque Country against Athletic Bilbao, while Real Betis will host Deportivo La Coruna.
