In Las Palmas the first chapter was witnessed when Xavi took off Robert Lewandowski with the score at 1-1. That penalty in added time scored by Gündogan overshadowed a case that exploded in all its dimension in Seville. Once again, the coach replaced the Polish striker in a delicate situation, just four minutes after Isco scored to make it 2-2. And the forwards who remained on the field, especially Ferran Torres, along with Vitor Roque and João Félix, rewarded Xavi’s bravery with a valuable victory (2-4).
The ‘Lewi case’
Bad deal if Barça has to do without its star when it needs him most. And the problem does not correspond only to Xavi but is the exclusive responsibility of the ‘nine’. A player who has been fading little by little, to the point that he is not essential. Not even to come back from a game that he had looked so bad that he lost the League with that draw. The coach decided to take Lewandwoski off the field, who played 63 minutes. But Polish turned out to be irrelevant. It was flat.
The ‘nine’ had no weight in Seville. Inaccurate in the pass (only five good ones out of 12 attempts, a sad 42% success rate) and sterile in front of the Andalusian goal because he did not take a single shot. It’s not that he didn’t shoot at goal but rather at nowhere, proof that the change, in addition to being brave on the coach’s part, was more than fair.
Pau Cubarsí, a calm central defender
Pau did not start comfortably in his debut as a starter in the League. And it was logical. Just five minutes. It was when Isco detected a space behind him for Luiz Henrique to sneak in, but the shot went wide. From there, the young defender completed 45 spectacular minutes. He looked like he played in tails. He didn’t even sweat.
He naturally completed his debut as a starter in the League. In 45 minutes he only missed two passes: 33 good out of 35 attempts (94%). And he did not commit a single foul, exhibiting impeccable cleanliness in his football. He is a boy. A teenager, if you will. He can’t even drive, but he carried the ball masterfully for Seville.
He ended up asking for a change, exhausted as he was, leaving three truly spectacular defensive actions, frustrating Luiz Henrique’s attempts. There were 81 minutes full of personality, with presence (69 touches, in addition to finishing with 58 good passes out of 62 (94% correct). He only lost four balls and went to the locker room exhausted without committing a single foul.
When Lamine became Lamine again
There had been several games in which Lamine Yamal was not who he was when he spent more time on the bench than in the starting eleven. That young man daring, shameless, to a certain extent unconscious. As he must always be a forward who lives stuck on the wing, needing that overflow and dribbling to unbalance. This is what he did in an immense first half where he became Barça’s most dangerous piece.
He had clairvoyance. When the ball landed on the right wing, the Barça attack lit up, starring in luminous scenes like that roulette wheel in the play that ended with Lewandowski’s goal disallowed, already in added time of the first half. Although his legacy was a phenomenal left foot shot to the left post, prologue to a spectacular start to the second half, connected to the game.
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He grabbed the ball with authority to look into the eyes of Abner, a left-handed winger who found himself dwarfed by the boy. He took the ball and launched himself towards the baseline, a real treasure in this bureaucratic football that is almost always reduced to a horizontal pass to the closest teammate. Lamine said goodbye with the assist to the former City striker in the final 2-4 making him one of the great characters of the night. He finished with five good dribbles out of seven attempts (71%).
Ferran Torres, on a streak: 5 goals in 6 games
January is being an excellent month for the player, who, as Xavi recalled on Saturday, better “embodies” what a Barça footballer should be. One hundred games with the Barça shirt and three goals. Addition. Furthermore, five goals in the last six games, transformed into the most effective weapon for the Barça coach, who chose the most complicated route – sitting Lewandowski, the ‘sacred cow’ – and came out as a winner.