What a debut for FC Barcelona in the 2011/2012 La Liga season! Villlareal are one of the best teams in Spain and a traditionally difficult opponent for Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona, but this time they could do nothing to stop the blaugrana juggernaut. Thiago Alcantara, Cesc Fabregas, Alexis Sanchez and Lionel Messi (2) all scored as Villareal fell victim to a manita. Barcelona’s injury crisis in defense made Pep field an unusual 3-4-3, with Xavi and Villa on the bench, and Thiago, Cesc Fabregas and Alexis Sanchez starting. The experiment couldn’t have been more successful, and this should be a formation that Pep will use at least some more times during the season.
As expected after such a glorious performance, the ratings will be quite high. Read them after the jump!
Victor Valdés – 7
He made a spectacular save in the first half, but Rossi was offside. In the second half, he did well to save a free kick, but otherwise he was a mere spectator. This is sure to be one of the most eventless nights for Valdés this season, Barcelona were so dominant in possession that Villareal barely caused any trouble to the Barcelona goalkeeper.
Eric Abidal – 7.5
It’s hard to rate the defenders today, as they didn’t have much work. Abidal showed calmness and composure, and passed the ball very well. He also contributed going forward sometimes, although not as much as when he plays as a left back. Overall, a solid performance from Abidal along with some good clearances which could have meant trouble otherwise.
Javier Mascherano – 7.5
Made one mistake in the first half, falling asleep and allowing Rossi to create Villareal’s only chance, but was otherwise excellent, with some great tackles, namely on Giuseppe Rossi (Villareal’s only real threat today) and impeccable passing. Just like at the end of last season, Mascherano remains one of Barcelona’s most consistent performers.
Sergio Busquets – 7
This was probably Busquets’s least active match with a Barcelona jersey. He literally had nothing to do, as Villareal barely got past the halfway line. His most notable intervention was a header to the crossbar from a corner kick taken by Messi. He had even less to do than his two teammates in defense today but once in possession, demonstrated great distribution.
Seydou Keita – 7
He gave away the ball a few times, one of them allowing a Villareal counterattack that could potentially have been dangerous, but he was overall solid as a holding midfielder and kept getting better as the match went on. He linked up very well with Barcelona’s trio of creative midfielders, and shielded the defense quite well.
Cesc Fabregas – 8
Yet another excellent performance and his first league goal with the blaugrana jersey. Cesc seems to be improving with each passing game; his chemistry with Thiago, Iniesta and especially Messi makes it look as if he has never left the club. His passing and link-up play were exceptional and his run to score from Messi’s assist as well. There’s little doubt that Cesc was a great signing for Barcelona.
Thiago Alcantara – 9
Man of the Match, hands down. Thiago was given an unexpected start today and he showed exactly why Pep trusts him. He scored the first goal with an excellent shot from outside the box after dragging several players with him who probably thought he would pass, and assisted another two goals. His assist to Alexis Sanchez’s goal was nothing short of phenomenal. He showed great composure on the ball, always made the right decisions and showed some great vision, passing and dribbling. It’s hard to believe Thiago is only 20, Barcelona’s future is in great hands.
Andrés Iniesta – 8.5
The best compliment to Don Andrés’s performance today is that nobody missed Xavi. Iniesta played in Xavi’s usual position and he did an amazing job, spraying passes and dictating the tempo of the game. He linked up exceptionally well with Cesc and Thiago, and assisted Messi for the fourth goal, an assist that competes with Thiago’s for the Assist of the Night award. Overall, another great Iniesta performance, as usual.
Pedro Rodriguez – 7.5
Very good performance, much better than in the European Super Cup. He clearly won his duel with Cristian Zapata, making life torrid for the Colombian on the right hand side. He was also a key component of Barcelona’s intense high pressure, constantly hounding Villareal players and getting the ball back. A very positive performance from Pedrito.
Alexis Sanchez – 7.5
Scored his first goal in the blaugrana jersey after a magnificent Thiago assist. He did show tremendous work ethic and always made himself available for a pass and also made intelligent runs forward. He’s still learning and adapting to this new reality, but the first signs are very promising. He will undoubtedly get better with time and play a key role for the club going forward. Guardiola will surely reprimand him for the jersey celebration but I don’t think the ladies are complaining!
Lionel Messi – 9
Incredible as usual. He scored two goals, assisted another and was involved in everything Barcelona did going forward. Amazing as usual from this generation’s greatest footballer. He gave Cesc yet another inch-perfect assist to score, reminiscent of their La Masia days. Messi now has 6 goals and 4 assists in four matches this season. Astounding!
Substitutes:
Xavi Hernandez – 7
Came on for Andrés Iniesta in the second half and picked up where Don Andrés had left off, allowing Barcelona to keep their complete dominance of possession and keep creating chances.
David Villa – 6.5
Came on for Pedro with 25 minutes to go and didn’t really have a big impact as he was rarely involved. He still came very near to scoring on one occasion, but his shot went wide. Sanchez’s addition will allow Villa to get the rest he needs and couldn’t get last season.
Jonathan dos Santos – 6
Came on for Cesc Fabregas and didn’t really have the chance to be very involved in the game, although his passing was very decent.
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