A detailed, player-by-player breakdown of Barcelona's crucial La Liga victory over Granada
| Claudio Bravo | 7.9 |
Minutes played: 90 Touches: 39 Passes: 28 Pass Accuracy: 82 % Shots Faced: 4 Saves Made: 3 Clearances: 0 Arron says: 8.0 It was a performance that probably merited a clean sheet, but Claudio Bravo will be content to have contributed to another Barcelona win over any individual records. When called upon, Bravo was in excellent form with his fingertip save to deny Catalan midfielder Javi Marquez a particular highlight in what was overall a very solid display. | |
| Dani Alves | 5.7 |
Minutes played: 90 Touches: 43 Passes: 25 Pass Accuracy: 88 % Key Passes: 0 Fouls Won : 3 Tackles: 2 Aerial Duels Won : 1 Clearances : 4 Fouls: 1 Interceptions: 5 Arron says: 6 .5 Somewhat marginalised on the right-hand side by Ivan Rakitic's marauding runs and Lionel Messi's comparatively quiet match, Alves didn't get involved with an awful lot of Barcelona's offensive play, nor did he shine at the defensive end either. On the other hand, while he was beaten on a couple of occasions by Lass Bangoura, the same can be said of the defense's best performer -- Marc Bartra. We've seen better, but we've also seen much worse. | |
| Marc Bartra | 6.9 |
Minutes played: 90 Touches: 62 Passes: 49 Pass Accuracy: 86 % Tackles: 2 Interceptions: 2 Clearances: 5 Aerial Duels Won : 3 Arron says: 7.5 Speaking of Marc Bartra, that penalty decision is just about the only blot on what was another accomplished performance from our young Catalan centre-half. He was composed in possession, made a number of crucial interventions and last-ditch challenges, while he was virtually unbeatable in the air. No wonder so many Cules want to see Marc given an extended run in the starting line-up. | |
| Jeremy Mathieu | 5.9 |
Minutes played: 74 Touches: 60 Passes: 48 Pass Accuracy: 83 % Tackles: 1 Interceptions: 4 Clearances: 3 Aerial Duels Won: 1 Fouls: 2 Arron says: 6.5 Unfortunately, the number queuing up to give Mathieu the same praise is considerably shorter, if not entirely non-existent. It's not that he plays badly per se, just that he doesn't exude the same quality and confidence that we see from Pique, Bartra or even Mascherano. The Frenchman is a great squad player, capable of adding real depth in a match like this, although let's hope Lucho doesn't decide to use him as often when the going gets really tough. | |
| Jordi Alba | 7.1 |
Minutes played: 90 Touches: 71 Passes: 51 Pass Accuracy: 80 % Shots/Shots on Target: 0/0 Tackles: 7 Interceptions: 3 Clearances: 2 Key Passes : 1 Aerial Duels Won : 0 Arron says: 7 .5 Statistically, this was a monstrous defensive performance from Jordi Alba, deep in the midst of his supposed slump. Seven tackles, three interceptions, plus a couple of clearances to boot; Alba ensured that practically nothing would threaten Barcelona's left-flank, although his offensive contributions weren't quite as spectacular. | |
| Javier Mascherano | 6.9 |
Minutes played: 90 Touches: 61 Passes: 46 Pass Accuracy: 87 % Tackles: 6 Interceptions: 2 Shots/Shots on Target: 1/1 Clearances: 3 Aerial Duels Won: 2 Turnovers: 0 Key passes: 0 Sam says: 7.5 A very solid defensive performance from the Argentine. Making six tackles and two interceptions, Mascherano patrolled the back four and made sure Granada’s chances were kept to a minimum and there only goal coming from a long ball upfield. Mascherano is never going to be as effective as Busquets is in terms of creating attacks but his defensive effort meant Rakitić and Xavi could move forward without fear of a dangerous counterattack. | |
| Xavi | 6.7 |
Minutes played: 65 Touches: 36 Passes: 28 Pass Accuracy: 79 % Shots/Shots on Target: 1/1 Turnovers: 0 Key Passes: 0 Fouls Won : 1 Tackles: 2 Sam says: 6.5 Not the best game for Xavi in which his midfield partner produced most of the magic. Xavi found it a little difficult to make any real influence on the game and was limited to a single shot as his sole attacking contribution. Perhaps even more shockingly his passing success rate was just 79%, very unusual for a man used to hitting 90+%. He left the field just after the hour and will be keen to move on. | |
| Ivan Rakitic | 8.8 |
Minutes played: 90 Touches: 68 Passes: 53 Pass Accuracy: 77 % Shots/Shots on Target: 3 /2 Fouls Won: 1 Interceptions: 1 Turnovers: 2 Key Passes: 3 Fouls : 1 Sam says: 8.5 Arguably one of Rakitić’s best games in a Barcelona shirt. He opened the scoring by gambling on a deflection coming his way. Suárez’s effort was deflected and fell kindly to the feet of the Croatian who buried it into the back of the net. He was also involved in the second goal but this time he was the creator. Playing a clever one-two with Suárez, Rakitić dinked the ball into the path of the Uruguayan who put it away for Barça’s second. This linking play between him and the front three was Rakitić’s best attribute of the game as he regularly combined with Messi and Suárez to create chances. | |
| Luis Suarez | 9.0 |
Minutes played: 78 Touches: 27 Passes: 19 Pass Accuracy: 89 % Shots/Shots on Target: 2/1 Turnovers: 2 Successful Dribbles: 1 Key Passes: 2 Fouls Won: 0 Clearances : 1 Arron says: 9 .0 Well, this is why players like Luis Suarez command the "big bucks". Just days after he eviscerated Manchester City with an extraordinary display of clinical finishing, Suarez was at it again, putting Granada to the sword with another virtuoso display. His goal was well-taken and Suarez also had his fingerprints over the other two Barcelona goals, directly setting up Lionel Messi's tap-in and inadvertently providing a "hockey assist" for Rakitic's opener. More of this please Luisito. | |
| Lionel Messi | 7.7 |
Minutes played: 90 Touches: 70 Passes: 43 Pass Accuracy: 79 % Shots/Shots on Target: 6 /3 Fouls Won: 2 Successful Dribbles: 7 Key Passes: 1 Turnovers: 5 Tackles: 1 Arron says: 7.5 In truth, I was a little disappointed by Messi's performance on Saturday although my feeling of disappointment did not stem from his shortcomings, rather from my own warped expectations. We've grown to expect Messi to score a goal or two every game, and provide countless assists or at least defense-splitting passes, so when he doesn't, it can come as a surprise. Still, Messi scored a goal and was integral to most of our attacks -- so even on this "quiet" day, he was still better than just about every other football player on the planet. Let's hope he conserved that energy with Villarreal in mind. | |
| Neymar | 6.4 |
Minutes played: 90 Touches: 6 9 Passes: 46 Pass Accuracy: 87 % Shots/Shots on Target: 1/0 Fouls Won: 1 Key Passes: 4 Successful Dribbles: 3 Turnovers: 7 Arron says: 7.0 The general consensus among Cules was that Neymar played terribly and needs a rest. The second part of that statement is clearly correct; the first? Not so much, at least in my opinion. Yes, he turned over the ball a fair amount and wasn't at his effervescent best but he still created a number of chances for his teammates and unlike let's say Suarez in 2014, he wasn't squandering chances of his own. In that sense, I wasn't too concerned by what I saw on Saturday; chances are, Neymar will regain his mojo right in time for the Clasico... | |
| Rafinha | 6.4 |
Minutes played: 25 Touches: 21 Passes: 19 Pass Accuracy: 89 % Fouls Won : 3 Arron says: 6.5 Increasingly, it is Rafinha who has become Luis Enrique's first name off the bench in 2015 and it's obvious to see why. He offers energy and quality in the middle of the field, and that combination is a rare one to have off the bench. Here, while he offered nothing spectacular, Rafinha still managed to display his undoubted class to help close out the final stages of the match. | |
| Sergio Busquets | 6.4 |
Minutes played: 16 Touches: 14 Passes: 13 Pass Accuracy: 77 % Arron says: N/A A late substitute in an already decided match; it would be harsh to lend too much credence to Busquets' performance on Saturday, although it's noteworthy that he too struggled for accuracy on a difficult playing surface. | |
| Pedro | 5.6 |
Minutes played: 12 Touches: 6 Passes: 4 Pass Accuracy: 100 % Shots/Shots on Target : 1/1 Arron says: N/A If Busquets had a cameo appearance, Pedro was the equivalent of an uncredited extra. His short time on the field barely saw him touch the ball, although he still managed to take one shot that was capably saved by the impressive former Barca shot-stopper, Oier Olazabal. | |
| The Team | 7.1 |
Passes: 496 Pass Accuracy: 82 % Shots/Shots on Target: 16 /9 Tackles: 25 Aerial Battles Won: 47 % Fouls Won/Committed: 18/9 Arron says: 7.5 A 3-1 win away from home against one of the league's worst sides may not seem all too special for a team like FC Barcelona, but this was exactly the kind of match that tripped us up last season. Remember the 0-1 defeat at Nuevo Los Carmenes last year? Well, we've come full circle since that night and given the dramatic latest twist in the La Liga title race, we may well look back and see just how important this win was. | |
| Luis Enrique | 7.0 |
Arron says: 7.5 The match was well managed by Enrique, although one could argue that his decision not to rest Neymar may have a detrimental impact on the team in the next match against Villarreal. However, that being said all of Lucho's other decisions were spot on and once again, his substitutions were on the money. | |
| MOTM - Ivan Rakitic | 45% |
Arron says: Rakitic Ivan Rakitic narrowly pipped Luis Suarez to the post, winning by just two votes from the Uruguayan who claimed an impressive 44% of the vote. Trailing well behind with 7% was Lionel Messi in third. | |
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