Lionel Messi started on the bench for Barcelona but goals from Carles Alena and Luis Suarez meant no rescue act was required at Deportivo Alaves on Tuesday night.
It wasn’t a vintage Barca display but Alena struck in the 54th minute before Suarez converted from the spot six minutes later to seal the victory as the Catalans got three points closer to winning the La Liga title.
The visitors’ second goal was initially ruled offside but a VAR review, the referee pointed to the spot for a handball by Tomas Pina.
Messi did take to the pitch just past the hour mark but the job was done by then and it proved to be little more than a run out for the Argentine superstar.
The result means Barca will be crowned champions if they win their next game at home to Levante or even before that should Valencia take points off second-placed Atletico Madrid.
Here, we rate the performances of the Barcelona players.
STARTING XI (4-3-3)
Marc-Andre ter Stegen – A couple of routine saves to make but never really broke a sweat. 6
Nelson Semedo – Good on the ball and got forward often enough but didn’t threaten with his delivery. 5
Gerard Pique – Apart from one poor challenge on Jony, he was solid at the back. Played out from the back well. 7
Samuel Umtiti – Struggled with his tackles, failing to register a successful one and fouling three times instead. 4
Sergi Roberto – Picked up the assist for the opener and produced good delivery. Much better on the right side. 7
Arturo Vidal – Good energy and added steel in midfield, winning his share of tackles. 7
Sergio Busquets – A sloppy pass early on but reverted to the composed, reliable anchorman we know him to be soon enough. 6
Carles Alena – Looked sharp and was heavily involved in Barca’s play. Took his goal well after a fine run to get into position. 8
Ousmane Dembele – A quite performance by his standards. Beat a few players but never threatened, taking no shots. 6
Luis Suarez – Far from his best again and never really looked like scoring. Was fortunate to net from the spot with the keeper getting a hand to it. 6
Philippe Coutinho – A couple of neat touches and turns but he’ll need to show more if he wants to start against former side Liverpool in the Champions League. 6
SUBS
Lionel Messi (61′) – It’s amazing how he can tread onto a pitch and immediately raise the level of his side. A few good dribbles and even forced a nice save. 7
Jordi Alba (70′) – Came on for Semedo and ventured forward often. 6
Arthur (87′) – N/A
