Barcelona were shocked at home as they lost to newly promoted Alaves 2-1 last night. A team of Neymar, Suarez and Messi could only muster a few shots and manage just the solitary goal as Alaves scripted one of the greatest nights in their modest history. So how did the superstars from Barcelona fare in last night’s Barcelona vs Alaves match ?
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Jasper Cillessen – 4
The Dutch stopper could not do much for the first goal, but could have stopped the second goal as the ball went past his fingers.
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Aleix Vidal – 4
The ex-Seville man clearly showed why Barcelona must have Sergi Roberto in the Right back position with a disappointing performance. Active on the wing, but could not link up with the front three and lacked precision with his passes. His defensive frailties were exposed by Alaves.
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Mascherano – 3
The Argentine clearly had an off day at the defensive end of the pitch. He was clearly responsible for both the Alaves’ goals. The first goal was due to the negligence of the Argentine in anticipating the on rushing Brazilian Dyverson. The second goal was a result of the poor clearance from the Argentine.
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Jeremy Mathieu – 6
The Frenchman was clearly Barcelona’s mostly threatening player on the pitch. The defender did open the scoring for the Catalans with a header. He should have finished the opportunity when he fired wide with the goal ajar.
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Lucas Digne – 5
The Frenchman could not combine with Neymar well in the first half of the match. The defender improved late into the match with runs across the opposition box. (Barcelona vs Alaves)
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Sergio Busquets – 5
The captain of the match and the only La Masia product to start the match lacked precision in his passing. He was involved more in defence than in offense. The midfielder clearly was clearly found waiting for Neymar in attack.
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Ivan Rakitic – 5
The Croatian started the match brightly in the middle of the pitch. His influence on the match decreased as the match went on, missed a couple of good opportunity to score for the Catalans. (Barcelona vs Alaves)
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Denis Suarez – 5
The youngster had a game to forget, his passes was clearly intervened by the Alaves defence. He should have done better with the Kiko Femenia’s cross which led to Alaves’ opening goal of the night.
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Arda Turan – 5
The Turk had a problem in combining with the new signing Paco Alcacer and the Brazilian Neymar. Clearly had no influence on the game. (Barcelona vs Alaves)
Paco Alcacer – 4
The new signing has clearly showed that he has not adapted well with his new teammates and did not help the team with tracking back players too. He was hardly visible on the pitch and only had a handful of meaningful touches.
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Neymar – 5
The Brazilian started the game with aplomb. Neymar moved all over the pitch in search of a goal for the Catalans. The attacker clearly missed his strike partners Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi.
Substitutes:
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Lionel Messi – 6
Arguably the best player on the pitch from the time he stepped on the pitch. Showed clearly how much Neymar and co missed the Argentine on the pitch. The Argentine should have equalised the score in the end minute of the extra time when he fired wide of the goal.
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Iniesta – 5
The midfielder, came on for Arda Turan late in the second half as Luis Enrique’s men looked to equalise. The Spaniard returning from an injury showed glimpses of magic late during the second half.
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Luis Suarez – 4
Luis Enrique, clearly made a mistake when he rested the Uruguayan. The Uruguayan, arguably the best player for Barcelona in the past two seasons failed to make an impact on this game. The attacker was rusty and did not utilise the opportunities.
