Gerard Pique got 10-man Barcelona out of jail as their 100-per-cent start to the season was ended by battling Girona.
Barca looked to be cruising when Lionel Messi’s eighth goal of the campaign gave them an early lead, but defender Clement Lenglet’s 35th-minute dismissal was compounded by Cristhian Stuani’s equaliser before the break.
Stuani doubled his tally six minutes into the second half as the visitors threatened to pull off a major shock in the Catalan derby, but central defender Pique clinched a 2-2 draw which sent his side back to the top of the La Liga table on goal difference with a 63rd-minute header.
Here is our report card from Camp Nou.
KEY MOMENTS
11th min CHANCE: Messi waltzes across the edge of the box after receiving the ball on the right, drops his shoulder and slides an effort bound for the bottom corner but for Bono’s outstretched fingertips.
18th min GOAL Barcelona 1-0 Girona: Switched ball out of the back to Nelson Semedo, who takes the ball in well. The right-back cuts it back to Arturo Vidal, the Chilean’s cheeky turn inside the box allows him time to feed Messi in acres of space and the Argentine makes no mistake. The weight of the pass just required a simple redirection and Messi applied it with ease.
20th min CHANCE: Messi turns provider this time as he slips the ball into Luis Suarez on the inside-left channel, the striker shifts his weight inside by nutmegginng the defender and his fierce strike is well parried by Bono.
28th min CHANCE: Girona have threatened on the counter and they almost grab an equaliser. Barca are sliced open and two quick balls to free Portu on the right, he rounds Marc-Andre ter Stegen but his effort is just cleared off the line by a recovering Pique.
35th min RED CARD: Upon VAR review, Lenglet is sent off for an elbow, or rather an elbow smash, on Pere Pons which looked awkward at best and intentional at worst. A big opportunity for the Frenchman is blown and judging by his quick apology, it seemed like he understood the trouble he was in.
45th min GOAL Barcelona 1-1 Girona: And there’s the equaliser. Really clever centre-forward play from Stuani as runs across Pique to barge his way into the six-yard box from Aday Benitez’s deep cross from the right. He steadies himself and deftly finishes.
49th min: CHANCE: Semedo put through on the inside-right channel and he squares the ball to Suarez. The Uruguayan does well to work a shot, but it’s pushed out for a corner by Bono.
50th min GOAL Barcelona 1-2 Girona: Stuani’s second and it’s another excellent finish, with Pique again the offender in the build up. The defender’s poor positioning and then rash challenge should have been punished by Portu but he springs back up, Ter Stegen saves his strike and Stuani smashes home the rebound on the edge of the box.
59th min CROSSBAR: Messi, central position, around 30-yards out and it’s almost another perfect free-kick to add to his collection only for the the crossbar to deny him a second goal.
62nd min GOAL Barcelona 2-2 Girona: Pique, who has been at fault for two of Girona’s goals equalises with a somewhat fortuitous goal. Bono has to smother an angled shot from Suarez. The ball pings into the air and Pique climbs highest, heading a spinning ball into the net.
THE GOOD
Suarez’s sharpness – Slow and sluggish has been the description of Suarez’s start to the season, but he replaced that with sharp and slick against Girona. He was excellent on the half turn, passed with authority, ran across the forward line with intelligence and that trademark aggression was there throughout. The Uruguayan was unfortunate not to top a promising performance with a goal, but he was by far the standout for Barca.
Stuani’s finishing – The former Middlesbrough striker scored home and away against Real Madrid last season and he was the scourge of the other monster of La Liga on Sunday. The 31-year-old produced an archetypal No9’s display, holding the ball up well, linking with Portu and then finishing with aplomb. He bullied Pique for the first and smacked home a glorious second to guide Girona to a share of the spoils.
THE BAD
Pique’s defending – Touched on it earlier but while Pique ultimately rescued his side in the end, they perhaps wouldn’t have required saving were it not for his poor defending for both Girona goals. For the first, he was far too easily beaten to the cross by Stuani and then in the lead up to the second, the Catalan was caught out of position before hacking down Portu.
Mixed reviews for support acts – Lenglet was sent off, Semedo again struggled defensively and Arthur found life difficult in Barca’s midfield after the red card. Indeed, it was a mixed evening for the men brought in to freshen things up and only Vidal emerges with a positive rating next to his name.
TACTICAL TURNING POINT
The sending off. An obvious one, but it really did turn the tide of momentum in Girona’s favour. They had threatened to make inroads on the counter but were largely snuffed out until the numerical advantage. Samuel Umtiti replaced Ousmane Dembele to try and plug the gap, but it meant Girona could comfortably smother the hosts before springing dangerous counter-attacks.
VERDICT
BARCELONA: C
Under the circumstances, playing almost an hour of the game with 10 men it would seem coming away with a point is a decent result. For sure, the bright spot was the display of Suarez and in all areas of his game, he looked excellent.
GIRONA: A
Travelling to Camp Nou is a daunting prospect and even though they fell behind when Barca had 11 men, they punished the hosts after Lenglet’s dismissal. Showed plenty of enterprise and more than worthy of their precious point.
