Still in difficulty after a sad draw conceded against Granada, 19th in Liga, FC Barcelona had to recover on the pitch of Celta de Vigo this Saturday, who lost at home in the last three meetings. With the return of Roque, Lewandowski, De Jong and even Pedri and Yamal, Xavi’s men had the obligation to win to move up the standings and reassure themselves before challenging Naples, in the round of 16 of the Champions League. Well into this match, the Blaugranas obtained the first big opportunity of the match thanks to Yamal, with a curling shot (10th).
The Catalans then imposed their rhythm on this meeting, without being offensive. Vitor Roque showed imprecision, like a missed duel in front of Guaita (28th). We had to wait until the very end of the first period and an individual exploit from Lewandowski to see the score evolve. Served by Yamal in the middle, the Polish striker crossed his right-footed shot hard to open the scoring just before the break (1-0, 45th). A perfect moment to take the lead and put a blow to the morale of the Galician club.
Barça saved by a double from Lewandowski
But as is often the case, Barça failed to keep the score. After good collective action from Celta, the inevitable Aspas found himself in a striking position and, thanks to an unfortunate deflection from Koundé, was able to equalize just after returning from the locker room (1-1, 47th). In difficulty after the equalizer suffered, Barça was put to sleep throughout the match and failed to create a clear opportunity. On the contrary, Celta had the best opportunities of the match (62nd, 70th).
Still disappointing from start to finish, FC Barcelona did not reassure. Only a distant free kick from Raphinha forced Guaita to relax (66th). But while Barça was heading towards a new critical result, a penalty obtained could save, once again, the formation of Xavi Hernandez. And after a first miss from Lewandowski, the Pole finally scored a miraculous penalty to offer victory to Barça. At the end of the suspense, Barça won and came within two points of Girona, second in La Liga. A complicated match, but which will give the Catalans confidence before a round of 16 first leg on the Napoli pitch on Wednesday (9 p.m.).
