Messi uses space like no one else, as Mendilibar once noted
Barça have a joker in the pack. Whenever a game starts to get complicated, they turn to him to get them out of a fix. And that more or less sums up yesterday’s game at the Sánchez Pizjuán. Sevilla were the stronger side during the first half – they ran Barça ragged, played well collectively and took their chances in front of goal. Sevilla looked strong and were egged on by an enthusiastic home crowd. There’s a big difference between the Sevilla we usually see at their stadium and the one that struggles on the road; they almost seem like different teams – but that’s another story. On Saturday we saw the home version of Sevilla, and for half an hour they had Barça up against the ropes but came away with nothing.
Messi: always in the right place at the right time
It’s just that Barça have Messi... a player who, as Mendilibar once noted, is so adept at using spaces, he can “find a parking space anywhere”. He might appear to be invisible, closely marked, or be somewhere where he doesn’t pose a threat then all of a sudden, he’ll make a stealthy move, dart past two markers and appear just where you don’t expect him. By sheer coincidence, I was reading an old Puskás interview yesterday, published just after he had won his third Pichichi award; in it he said, “The hardest thing of all is making sure you are in exactly the right place to score”. Leo Messi gave a masterclass in that aspect of the game yesterday, appearing from nowhere to score three times. Then of course, there is his incredible way of striking the ball – in Seville he pulled off two very different left-footed shots, and one with his right foot – all of them precisely placed into the corner of the net.
Barcelona in a commanding position ahead of this week's Clásicos
After that, he had time to serve up a goal for his friend Luis Suárez who must have really appreciated it after the drought he’s been through. It was a sensational game by Messi – his few but hugely influential actions were enough to sink Sevilla and ensure Barça went home with LaLiga in the bag ahead of a week with two Clásicos (and with an extra day’s rest... as Solari quite rightly protested). As things stand, Wednesday’s game is probably the most interesting, because at least there is something to play for as far as Real Madrid are concerned - because LaLiga has practically been decided.