Lionel Messi, Barcelona Demolish Huesca 8-2 in La Liga

Barcelona continued their perfect start to the 2018-19 La Liga season on Sunday, beating minnows SD Huesca in La Liga. Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez scored twice in the 8-2 demolition of the top-level debutants.

Cucho Hernandez gave the visitors a shock lead early, but after that, it became one-way traffic. Messi tied things up, an own goal from Jorge Pulido made it 2-1, and Suarez all but killed the match as a contest. 

Alex Gallar was able to give his side a brief glimmer of hope just before half-time, but after the break, the Blaugrana went off. Ousmane Dembele, Ivan Rakitic, Messi, Jordi Alba and Suarez all added to the total.

The result leaves the Catalans tied with Real Madrid at the top of the standings.  

Here's what we learned from Sunday's match.

Huesca Expose Weak Point in Barcelona Defense With Crossing Game Plan

Barcelona impressed in many ways Sunday, responding brilliantly to going down early and showing just how much room there still is for improvement in the squad.

Huesca became the first side to break their defence, and they highlighted an area of weakness with both of their goals. Gerard Pique was caught ball-watching on crosses twice, and as shared by AS English, he was more preoccupied with claiming offside than defending for the first:

Samuel Umtiti's positioning also wasn't ideal on the first goal, and Sergi Roberto didn't close down his man for the second.

This is something the Catalans can work on, however, and it will likely be a working point ahead of the bigger matches to come, both in the league and Europe. If they don't, the likes of Mauro Icardi from Inter Milan and Harry Kane from Tottenham Hotspur will exploit every hole they can find.

David Ramos/Getty Images

There are more reasons to be excited for the future, however. Suarez's struggles continued on Sunday, but he did finally grab his first and second goal, and that might give him the confidence he needs to grow into the season.

Meanwhile, there were appearances from new signings Arturo Vidal, Clement Lenglet and Arthur, three players with the potential to make a major impact. All three are still getting used to the Blaugrana system and their new team-mates, but once they get up to speed, this side will only improve.

It's worth noting Huesca were unbeaten going into this match, as one of the best feel-good stories in European football. While they may be new to La Liga, they are no pushovers, yet they were still completely overrun by Barcelona.

All in all, it was a satisfying outing for the Catalans, who showed they can bounce back from an early setback and learned about a key weakness early in the season, giving them ample time to work at it.

What's Next?

Barcelona will visit Real Sociedad after the international break, while Huesca host Rayo Vallecano.