With both Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid winning their matches this weekend, Barcelona knew they had to beat Valencia to keep up with their rivals at the top of the table. Lionel Messi made sure that that was the case as he scored twice in a 3-2 win.
Barcelona missed the opportunity to go top of LaLiga last week when they fell to a shock loss to Granada. Had the Blaugrana won that match, they would have displaced Atletico Madrid as the league leaders. However, the failure to do so left them third in the league, behind both their rivals.
Both Atletico and Real Madrid played their respective matches before Barcelona this weekend. The two Madrid giants beat their opponents, putting pressure on Barcelona to do the same. Another loss this weekend would’ve left them five points adrift in third while also providing Sevilla with the chance to overtake them. Lionel Messi ensured that that wasn’t to be the case. The Argentine scored a brace against Valencia to help his side win 3-2.
Valencia took the lead against the run of play in the 50th minute. Barcelona had dominated the match up until that point in terms of possession. However, they found themselves a goal down when Gabriel Paulista headed the ball in following a corner. VAR denied Valencia immediate celebrations but confirmed the eligibility of the goal shortly after.
However, Valencia’s joy was short-lived as Barcelona won a penalty just six minutes after their opening goal. Defender Toni Lato was adjudged to have handled the ball in the area, allowing Messi the chance to equalize from the spot. The Argentine saw his initial spot-kick saved by Jasper Cillessen. An almighty scramble followed, which culminated in Messi scoring past the goalkeeper in his second attempt.
Barcelona took the lead in the 63rd minute through Antoine Griezmann. Cillessen denied Frenkie De Jong initially, but the ball fell kindly for Griezmann, who converted from close range. Six minutes later, Barca were two goals to the good. Messi made no mistake this time as he scored a freekick past the goalkeeper. Valencia pulled a goal back through Carlos Soler late in the match, but it proved to be in vain.
