FC Barcelona result against Alaves and what we learned

In the last home game of the season, FC Barcelona faced Alaves in La Liga. Here is the result, what happened and what we learned from the match.

The boys are fine

Forced to such selections due to a series of injuries and suspensions, Quique Setien has focused on Ronald Araujo, Ansu Fati and Riqui Puig along with his usual veteran core.

Puig was ready for this

Screaming to be included in Barça’s August Champions League campaign, pearl La Masia beat the goalkeeper and hit the crossbar with a nice curling shot in the opening minutes.

So it was Fati

Breaking free thanks to Luis Suarez’s karate kick beyond the baseline, the 17-year-old struck just wide. Two good deals for visitors in the first 10 minutes.

It was also woodworking for Vidal

Powered by a nice bouncy ball from Puig, the Chilean modified his body shape to also hit the crossbar with a volley.

And then Messi

This time by cutting the post, the Argentine’s left defender was denied having made four key chances in a quarter of an hour.

Fati has unlocked the situation

Messi that splintered in the six yard, his cross was deflected but the number 31 jumped home in the bottom drawer. 0-1, finally.

A new record for Messi

With that, the Ballon d’Or winner became the first La Liga star to provide 21 assists in a single campaign.

Puig joined him almost like a “Waiter“

Thinking fast with a through ball, a Suarez recipient was poor in one-on-one and failed to double for FC Barcelona.

But he finally did it after the water break

And coincidentally it was Puig a Messi who doubled the Blaugrana advantage, the tap-in from close range far too easy for the skipper.

Messi put a hand on the Pichichi

Followed by title-winning Karim Benzema at Real Madrid, Messi hit that 24 for the quarter and even garnered a smile in his celebration.

stunning effort Suarez!

Messi throws Jordi Alba’s scorer, the left-back hits him for the first time on Suarez’s pumpkin for El Pistolero to go home. Show stuff.

A good first half

The uselessness of the draw gave him the feeling of a preseason friendly, there were still many positives to be taken from the top 45. The youngsters of Barça in particular had been up to par and were shouting late for serious recognition in the Champions League League. As for the elderly, there were promising signs of the old and magical chemistry between Messi, Alba, Suarez, and Vidal.

More shots

Lenglet approaches badly, the Frenchman was replaced after some delay by Nelson Semedo. The fact that Araujo was the only natural center on the pitch, however, meant that Vidal of all people had to collaborate with him for the rest of the match.

Semedo on the report

In Vidal’s midfield, the Portuguese was found right by Puig to bury his shot in the opposite corner.

Frenkie de Jong has gained a few minutes

Approaching the hour immediately following the fourth goal, the Dutchman has supplanted Sergio Busquets as a pivot. His natural position, many were quick to point out, but until recent birthday boy Busquets moves in, it still won’t truly be his.

A brace for Messi

De Jong cleverly moved it to the left for Alba, Messi hooked on the delivery of the Spaniard to most likely put the Pichichi out of Benzema’s reach.

Martin Braithwaite has been hired for the past 15 years

Whispers abound in the local press that this could be his last appearance for the Catalans as he is not registered for the UCL, the Dane concluded the brilliant Fati afternoon.

Morale was somewhat raised

Surely this beating will not fully compensate for the transfer of the Spanish top flight title, but at least Barça ended 2019/2020 on a positive note. Now, as Setien implied in his pre-match press conference, they have to carry on what has worked for them here in the Champions League.

Tired legs will now be granted some rest, but with Vidal and Busquets disqualified, Riqui Puig MUST start against Napoli in the decisive match of the second round on 8 August.