Gerard Pique and Carles Alena grabbed the goals as Barcelona earned a 2-0 home win over Villarreal, but who caught the eye and who struggled?
We rate all the players here.
BARCELONA
Ter Stegen 6. Had very little to do as Villarreal failed to muster a meaningful effort on target. Distributed the ball well.
Semedo 7. Combined well with Dembele down the right and contained the attacking threat of Fornals without trouble.
Pique 8. Combined diligent defensive duties with a good header for the opener. Composed and classy, reading everything well.
Lenglet 6. Dithering defending nearly gifted Moreno an early goal, but he recovered from that slow start to give a solid showing.
Alba 6. Willing runner down the left wing but a lack of a genuine striker hindered his crossing. Less effective than usual.
Rakitic 7. Shared duties with Busquets as the defensive midfielder and helped Barca control the flow with a smooth showing.
Busquets 6. More advanced than usual, often leading his team’s pressing. But that made him less of a factor at the base of midfield.
Vidal 6. Regularly darted forward to occupy the penalty box, intelligently shuttling between the roles. Replaced by Alena.
Dembele 7. Showed nimble footwork and always looked capable of creating danger, including the cross for Pique’s opener.
Messi 7. Playing in as a false nine, he forced a couple of first half saves but faded in the second before beautifully teeing up Alena.
Coutinho 5. Weak display, struggling more than anyone else to fit into the false nine formation. Subbed with ten minutes left.
SUBS
Alena 7. Came on for Vidal with 20 minutes remaining, and rounded off a neat performance with a well-taken first league goal.
Malcom 5. Entered the fray for the final ten minutes and had little chance to shine other than a looped header over the top.
VILLARREAL
Asenjo 6. Probably should have saved Pique’s goal after getting a strong hand on it, but made a trio of decent stops from Messi.
Gaspar 6. The visiting skipper was a more restrained figure than usual, leaving the right-sided attacking to Chukwueze.
Gonzalez 5. Saw yellow for a late challenge on Messi and regularly looked to be on the verge of a second. Poor on the ball.
Ruiz 7. Also booked for a clumsy early lunge on Messi but then managed to play with composure to hold his team’s defence together.
Pedraza 7. Had his hands full with the pace and trickery of Dembele and Semedo, but still regularly got forward well.
Trigueros 5. Unable to dictate play as he likes and was substituted midway through the second half as Villarreal changed formation.
Caseres 7. Did well to block a goalbound strike by Dembele and was a steady presence throughout, making life difficult for Barca.
Cazorla 5. Tidy enough but in harmless areas, creating little around the box. Curled a free-kick over the bar before being replaced.
Chukwueze 6. Launched Villarreal’s first attack with a penetrating dribble and remained his team’s biggest threat, but faded after the break.
Fornals 5. Very quiet. Offered little in attack and could have done more defensively. Booked for a frustrated late lunge on Busquets.
Moreno 5. Struck the post in the early stages but was then second best in his running battle with Pique, and eventually substituted.
SUBS
Bacca 5. Came on as a second striker as the visitors chased a leveller and showed good movement across the front line but didn’t threaten.
Ekambi 5. Replaced Moreno in the latter stages but made little impact as Barca eased their way to victory.
Raba. Played the final few minutes without having enough time to make a meaningful impact.
