Barcelona player ratings as Osasuna thumped 4-0: Griezmann, Messi...
Barcelona's forward players enjoyed their afternoon as Ronald Koeman's men got back to winning ways in LaLiga with a 4-0 victory over Osasuna.
Marc-André ter Stegen:
Showed excellent concentration and agility throughout the match, albeit Jon Moncayola almost caught him out with a hopeful hit from the halfway line in the first half. What more can you say about his shot-stopping, though? He’s incredible between the posts.
Sergiño Dest:
Incisive. Dest got into dangerous positions around the opposition box countless times. In the wake of the American’s fitness issues in the lead-up to the game, Barça head coach Ronald Koeman opted to take him off on the hour mark.
Óscar Mingueza:
A conscientious performance. He doesn’t take any chances. If he sees that the opposition forward is going to receive the ball, he’ll commit the foul if need be and get back into position. He brought the ball out neatly, although his mistake when passing out from the back in the second half almost gave Osasuna a chance to score.
Clément Lenglet:
The worst news of the day for Barça. An unfortunate challenge with Rubén García saw the defender forced off in the second half. With Gerard Piqué already out, the Blaugrana needed him to marshall the defence - but he could now be sidelined himself.
Jordi Alba:
Great first half. He was involved in both Barça’s first two goals. The hosts played with a lot of players operating in central areas, offering a platform for the full-backs to shine. Alba has a terrific understanding with Lionel Messi, Philippe Coutinho and Antoine Griezmann.
Frenkie de Jong:
A decent performance. He brought stability to the team by always keeping possession, allowing Barça to dominate the game. Ended up as a makeshift centre-back after Lenglet limped off. He finds life tougher in defence, but that’s to be expected.
Pedri:
Took a while to get used to his role in central midfield, but grew into the game. He plays it simple and ups the tempo, and that can’t fail to benefit Barça’s game. Koeman withdrew him at half time to give him a breather.
Philippe Coutinho:
Very good. He showed more daring than on other occasions, letting fly several times. He should have scored in the first half, but failed to find the net with keeper Sergio Herrera out of his goal. However, he made up for it with a goal in the second 45.
Antoine Griezmann:
Scored the goal of the game with a fabulous volley. A much more lively display from the Frenchman, who was more involved in the team’s play and also worked really hard, for instance winning the ball back in the build-up to Coutinho’s goal. One of the afternoon’s success stories.
Lionel Messi:
Was involved in Barça’s second goal and netted a fantastic strike to make it 4-0, offering a lovely tribute to Diego Maradona as he celebrated the effort. He looked at ease; Martin Braithwaite playing as a target man helps him, allowing him greater freedom to float.
Martin Braithwaite:
He isn’t letting anyone down. The Dane, who opened the scoring today, is persistent and hard-working, and hasn’t looked out of place in the two starts that Koeman has given him this week. He has shown that he perhaps wasn’t getting the game time he deserved.
Substitutes:
Sergio Busquets:
Did enough. He showed all his experience and knowhow, doing exactly what the team needed from him at all times and looking very comfortable.
Junior Firpo:
Had to play at right-back to give Dest a rest. Did his job.
Francisco Trincão:
An enthusiastic, lively display off the bench. Might have scored, but sent his shot wide when released by Messi.
Ousmane Dembélé:
Had a goal chalked off, in an active half-hour display in which he made his presence felt.
Carles Aleñá:
Brought on when Lenglet was forced off through injury. As in Kyiv, he gave a thoroughly acceptable performance.