LIGA – At 10 against 11, Barça beats Osasuna and takes a 5-point lead

This Barça is stunning. Led very quickly on the lawn of Osasuna following an early goal from David Garcia Zubiria (6th), FC Barcelona managed to win (1-2) in numerical inferiority this Tuesday evening as part of the 14th day of La Liga. Managed to equalize as soon as the locker room returned through Pedri (45th), the Catalans forced the decision at the very end of the game thanks to a splendid header from Raphinha (84th).

Winners for the fourth consecutive time in all competitions, the players of Xavi Hernandez consolidate their first place (37 points) in the championship, they who are now five lengths ahead of their runner-up and great rival Real Madrid (32 points). Assured of keeping their leader’s chair before the long break due to the World Cup in Qatar, the Blaugranas will be able to quietly enjoy an almost perfect first third of the season (12 wins, 1 draw and 1 defeat in fourteen games).

The Barça revolt

Best pupil of La Liga at the truce, Barça will however have gone through all the emotions this evening against a formation of Osasuna not decided to make the task easy for the partners of Sergio Busquets. Deprived of many players at kick-off including Frenchman Jules Koundé, the Catalans were first surprised after a few minutes on a corner converted into a goal by the head of the rogue David Garcia Zubiria (6th, 1-0) . Stunned by this first blow of fate, the Catalans received a second uppercut half an hour into the game when their star scorer Robert Lewandowski was stupidly sent off for a foul as gross as it was useless on this same Garcia Zubiria (30th) .

Logically reduced to ten, Barça waited until the return from the locker room to put their heads back in place. The revolt came from a rather discreet Pedri (47th, 1-1) until then, the player trained at La Masia taking advantage of the good work of Jordi Alba and Ferran Torres to bring his people up to their host of the day on a resumption of the flat of the surgical foot along the post of Aitor Fernandez. Insatiable, the Catalans were not satisfied with the point of the draw and even managed to take the advantage at the very end of the match following an action marked with the seal of class.

Placed in a slightly more remote position at the dawn of the last quarter of an hour (75th) following the exit of his partner Andreas Christensen (replaced by Gavi), Frenkie De Jong surprised the whole rearguard of Osasuna by sending Raphinha into orbit with a superb opening from the central circle. Quicker to react than the opposing defenders, the Brazilian striker gave his side a definitive advantage by failing to take an Aitor Fernandez too advanced on this one with a perfectly felt lobed header (84th, 1-2). A goal that could prove to be crucial when it comes to doing the accounts on the evening of the 38th day.