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Nov 28, 2019


Lionel Messi once again produced a master class which secured Barcelona the top spot in their Group of this Season's Champions League Competition. The Argentinian Maestro was at his very best scoring one and assisting the other two.



Barcelona Defeats Borrusia Dortmund 3-1 at the Camp Nou #BarcaBVB #Barca #Messi

Once again for the umpteenth time in his career, Lionel Messi was the difference-maker on a night which could have spelled disaster for Barcelona. Courtesy of the 3-1 victory, Barcelona have managed to qualify to the knock-out stages as the group winner. That has put to rest all our doubts regarding qualification!


The Messi, Saurez, and Griezmann (MSG) combination all got into the scoresheet for the second time this season. It's rather significant, as Griezmann didn't start the game and came in as a substitute for injured Dembele. The most positive factor for Barcelona would the way Griezmanna and Messi were combining and the fact that Messi was looking for the French on the left every time.





The Good and The Bad of Barcelona Displayed in the Same Match


Once again this was not a match where you could say that all of Barcelona's worries are gone. There were very good bright moments early in the match, but as the match went to its logical end, we once again got to see the worrying side of the team. Maybe the first-hour performance of the team would be the best we have seen so far this season. And the last twenty minutes was the usual affair throughout the season.


In my preview of this match, I have written about Borrusia Dortmund's inconsistent season and the match will be decided by which version turns up at Camp Nou. And it ap;pears the 'Not So Scary' one turned up.


They appeared totally confused by the way they set up for this match. From the onset it was clear that they were planning to sit back and defend, but then they still held the high line and didn't crowd and press the midfield. That made life easier for Barcelona. They were the first one to threaten after Rakitic gave the ball away and a combination of Umtiti and Ter Stegan somehow kept them away from scoring. It was surprising that they didn't put much pressure on our midfield thereafter.


That helped Barcelona to settle, and once Messi was afforded the space, there was no stopping. Our midfield looked comfortable and that immediately resonated on the defense, as Umtiti and Lenglet combination gave us stability which was absent when Pique was playing. Maybe it's time for Umtiti and Lenglet to start ahead of Pique.


Saurez and Messi was Combining to create Havoc in Dortmund Defense


The initial exchanges was quiet and most of the game was being run through Dembele, who once again showed a lack of maturity with his decision making. Slowly Messi started to get involved and that meant Saurez being dragged into the game. The kind of understanding between those two were legendary at times.


It was not a surprise to see both of them combining to open the scoring. The second goal also came through that combination after Saurez was gifted the ball by Matts Hummels. Messi slotted that goal in usual Messi fashion with almost all the defense sliding into the goal trying to stop the shot. The third came from Griezmann, who replaced an injured Dembele. The best thing about the goal was Griezmann's awareness to stay available on the left and timing his run onto Messi pass.


After the early quiet phase, Barcelona did upped the tempo following the first goal. There was a danger of Dortmund being overrun by 5-6 goals. But following the third goal, the tempo dropped further and the mistakes started creeping in. That was the result why we had less possession than the opposition; and that too at Camp Nou.


May be it's the fact that they have to face Atletico Madrid in the weekend is the reason why they removed the foot from pedal. But it is evident that this side cannot keep possession, even they try to defend a 3-0 lead. That's the problem which will haunt this team in days to come.

All About FC Barcelona


AllAboutFCBarcelona.com is a Blog dedicated to the Most prestigous Club in the world, FC Barcelona by an ardent fan. Here I discuss about the Latest happening surrounding our Club and present my Views about the same.

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