Luis Suarez came off the bench to rescue Barcelona from another disastrous defeat, providing both assists as the Catalans came from behind to win 2-1 at Almeria.
Former Espanyol striker Thievy Bifouma had given the hosts the lead before half-time against a Barca team that started without mainstays Neymar, Suarez, Gerard Pique, Dani Alves and Xavi Hernandez.
But Luis Enrique made decisive changes at the break in an attempt to avert a third straight league defeat, bringing on Neymar, Suarez, and later Xavi.
The Brazilian forward grabbed the equaliser thanks to a pass from Suarez and then the Uruguayan also played in Jordi Alba for the winning goal in the 82nd minute.
An unfamiliar Barca team featuring Munir El Haddadi, Adriano, Marc Bartra, Rafinha and Ivan Rakitic instead of the discarded players looked haggard for large parts of the first half.
Almeria made several incursions into the visitors’ area without really testing Claudio Bravo, but the Catalans squandered two golden opportunities in the 28th minute. Rakitic got on the end of a Munir cross from eight yards out but Ruben Martinez beat the ball away from the near corner, and then Messi headed the subsequent cross onto the bar.
However, eight minutes before the break, Almeria’s earlier efforts were rewarded, as Barca were sliced in half on the counter. Messi was crowded out in the final third and two passes later Thievy was sprinting towards goal, stroking the ball into the bottom corner.
Enrique responded by introducing Neymar and Suarez immediately after the break, sacrificing Munir and Pedro. But still the visitors struggled, although the Uruguayan struck the bar with an overhead kick, and Neymar side-footed wide at the near post.
Almeria’s resistance finally broke in the 73rd minute.
Suarez got beyond his full-back on the right hand side area and squared to Neymar, whose scuffed finish rolled off the foot of Ruben and trickled into the net.
Once level, Barca went all out for the winner. Suarez laid the ball on for Messi to head at goal, but the Argentinian was again denied by the bar, missing another opportunity to equal Telmo Zarra’s record of 251 Primera Division goals.
The all-important goal eventually arrived through the unlikely source of Alba, with Suarez again the provider. The substitute chipped the ball towards the far post and the left-back failed to connect properly with the cross but did enough to turn it into the bottom corner.
Real Madrid retained top spot in La Liga with a flattering 5-1 victory over Rayo Vallecano at the Bernabeu.
Five different players were on target for Los Blancos, Gareth Bale scoring on his return from injury, Toni Kroos claiming his first goal in Madrid colours while Sergio Ramos, Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo also netted. Alberto Bueno struck Rayo’s consolation.
The hosts went ahead early on when Rayo squandered possession and Kroos had space down the left to deliver a low cross for Bale to convert from close range. But Madrid then struggled against an ambitious Rayo side who regularly pushed forward and forced awkward saves from Keylor Navas – deputising for the rested Iker Casillas – with long-range strikes from Leo Baptistao and Bueno.
Carlo Ancelotti’s team gradually built momentum, Benzema grazing the crossbar with a header.
A second goal started to look inevitable and it arrived five minutes before the break with more than a hint of fortune, James
Rodriguez’s corner being unconventionally turned home by Ramos’ thigh.
However, Rayo were gifted a route back into the game when James played a suicidal back pass straight to Baptistao, whose square pass gave Bueno a simple finish into the unguarded net.
The visitors started the second half strongly and Baptistao had a goal disallowed for offside before the game was effectively killed as a contest when Ronaldo cut back a pass for Kroos, who applied a wonderful low curling finish from 25 yards. Ronaldo was again the provider for his team’s fourth, finding Benzema – who should have been flagged offside – for a simple finish.
The remainder of the game became largely a question of whet-her Ronaldo would find the target to maintain his record of scoring in every league appearance this season, and the Portuguese star was frustrated when Cristian Alvarez made a near post save from a low shot.
But the Rayo keeper was badly at fault when Ronaldo finally did score, somehow allowing a half-hit effort to squirm through his arms and over the line to complete the scoring.
