Levante Ends Barcelona's Unbeaten La Liga Bid with 5-4 Upset Win

Barcelona will not finish the 2017-18 La Liga campaign with an unbeaten record, as the Catalans slumped to a shocking 5-4 defeat at the hands of Levante in their penultimate match.

Emmanuel Boateng bagged a hat-trick for Levante, while Philippe Coutinho did the same for Barcelona. Enis Bardhi scored twice for Levante in the second half, pushing the lead to 5-1 before a furious comeback began.  

Coutinho's hat-trick and a questionable Luis Suarez penalty cut the deficit to a single goal, but the hosts held on to their slim advantage.

Here are the key takeaways from Sunday's match.

Greedy Barcelona Ruin Chance at History Over a Friendly

Barcelona were just two matches short of a historic unbeaten La Liga campaign and ruined it all for the opportunity to earn a little extra cash with an in-season friendly in South Africa. Let that sink in.

For fans who were surprised to see Lionel Messi out of the squad and Gerard Pique start on the bench, manager Ernesto Valverde had his reasons:

Barcelona will face South African champions Mamelodi Sundowns on Wednesday.

Levante were more than game in the first half and took full advantage of Yerry Mina's struggles―more on those later―and without Messi there to save the day off the bench, there was no coming back for the Blaugrana:

Barcelona pride themselves on being "Mes Que un Club" and doing things the right way, but greed cost them big Sunday. If Real Madrid end up winning the UEFA Champions League later this month, their fans will have all the more reason to laugh at their rivals―and rightly so.

No Messi, No Comeback

Barcelona's unbeaten streak barely survived several key moments this season, and perhaps the closest the team came to losing in La Liga until Sunday was on March 31 against Sevilla.

The Andalusians took a two-goal lead in that match and were more than comfortable until the Argentinian came off the bench for the final 30 minutes. He promptly turned the contest on its head and would go on to tie things up. Both Barcelona goals fell in the closing minutes.

If anything, Sunday's result was yet another reminder of just how pivotal Messi is for his team.

Coutinho, Brazil's Hope for the World Cup?

There were few positives to take away from Barcelona's performance Sunday, but Coutinho's brilliant hat-trick stood out, per Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe:

The former Liverpool man hasn't enjoyed the greatest start to his La Liga campaign, but he has shown flashes of his remarkable talent and improved his form over time.

With Neymar sidelined since February because of injury, no one knows just how his form will be in Russia. Coutinho appears to be peaking at just the right time, however, and could be the one to fill the void if needed.

Yerry Mina Needs a Lot of Work

Earlier this week, El Chiringuito's Ignacio Miguelez (h/t the Daily Mirror) reported Barcelona are looking to loan out Mina, as the Colombian defender is in need of extra minutes for the sake of his development. The 23-year-old hasn't gotten many opportunities at the Camp Nou yet, and Sunday, we learned why.

He was at fault for the first goal, and Vermaelen spent the bulk of his outing desperately trying to cover for his team-mate. Pique blundered away alongside him in the second half and Nelson Semedo also stood out for all the wrong reasons, but it was Mina who made the most mistakes of them all.

Sportswriter Rik Sharma was not impressed:

Perhaps he just got unlucky and reserved his worst outing of the season for Sunday's match, but based on what we saw against Levante, he has a lot of improving to do before he can even think of dislodging Pique or Samuel Umtiti in defence for Barcelona.

More Striker Pique, Please

Vermaelen picked up a knock in the first half and was sidelined while the hosts scored their second goal. His replacement was Gerard Pique, who promptly delighted just about anyone watching by moving to the front almost every chance he got.

Pundits were giddy:

It paid off as well: While Luis Suarez was credited with the assist for Coutinho's first goal, it was Pique's effort that created the chance.

What's Next

Barcelona end their season against Real Sociedad as both sides say goodbye to club legends in Andres Iniesta and Xabi Prieto. Levante visit Celta Vigo.