Barcelona beat Getafe 5-2 to put the pressure on table toppers Atletico Madrid

Lionel Messi scored two first half goals and provided a late assist to set up an emphatic win for Barca at the Camp Nou on Thursday.

Barcelona beat Getafe 5-2 at Camp Nou on Thursday to put the pressure on league leaders Atletico Madrid; twitter/@FCBarcelona
By Sreejith C R | Apr 23, 2021 | 2 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

Barcelona were not at their best on Thursday but still managed to convincingly beat Getafe 5-2 at Camp Nou. This allowed them to close the gap on leaders Atletico Madrid in the La Liga. Lionel Messi scored two goals in the first half. He also provided an assist to Ronald Araujo late in the match to set up an emphatic win. Getafe came with a game plan to sit back and hit the Catalans on the counter. Getafe succeeded to an extent, as they scored two goals from counter-attacks. But, Barca were clinical enough to score on the chances they got.

Lionel Messi started the scoring in the 8th minute. Sergio Busquets picked Messi with a precise ball from the midfield. The Barca captain raced past the Getafe defense to make it 1-0.

Getafe equalized within four minutes courtesy of an own goal from Clement Lenglet. Marc Cucurella’s cross from the left flank deflected off Lenglet to go inside the Barca goal.

A miss-communication between the Getafe goalkeeper and defender Sofian Chakla saw Barca make it 2-1 with the second own goal of the match. Getafe defender Sofian’s pass deceived the goalkeeper to go inside the goal.

Messi in sublime form

Five minutes later Messi scored his 25th goal of the season to make it 3-1. Messi hit the post with his first attempt and then scored the goal off the rebound from a tight angle. Messi has now scored 25 goals in La Liga for the 12th season in a row.

Getafe earned a penalty in the 69th minute after VAR intervention, as Ronald Araujo fouled Turkish striker Ened Unal from behind, inside the penalty box. Unal converted the penalty to make it 3-2.

Araujo redeemed himself in the 87th minute, as he rose above the Getafe defense to score at the near post from a Lionel Messi corner. Antoine Griezmann won a penalty in the injury time and the Frenchman converted the penalty to seal the match for the Catalans.

Ronald Koeman’s side had all the ball possession(81%) and it was attack versus defense as Getafe were happy to sit back deep and defend.

Atletico are at the top of the points table with 73 pints from 32 games, Barca are five points behind the leaders at the third place, having played a game less. Barcelona will next play away to Villarreal on Sunday.





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