XtraTime Web Desk: Barcelona announced their return in La Liga with a thrashing 4-0 victory over Real Mallorca at San Moix on Saturday night. Arturo Vidal, Martin Braithwaite, Jordi Alba and Lionel Messi were on the score sheet for the Catalans. The win helped Barcelona extend their lead on top of the La Liga table with 61 points from 28 games.
Barcelona coach Quique Setien made a couple of surprises by starting with Braithwaite ahead of Luis Suarez. The gaffer also had Ronaldo Araujo in the starting lineup in place of Samuel Umtiti in the central defence.
Barcelona started with a bang, taking an early lead in the match through Auturo Vidal in the second minute. Frenkie de Jong won back a ball deep in the Mallorca area and then fed a pass to Jordi Alba, who swung in a cross and the Chilean speared the header in for the goal. The Catalans kept on the pressure by creating opportunities but failed to convert. Braithwaite extended the lead for Barca in the 37th minute. De Jong again did well to keep a ball alive in the Mallorca half which allowed Messi to flick a header over to a wide-open Braithwaite, who let the ball take a short hop before hammering in a right-footer for a 2-0 lead. Both sides went into the breather with the visitors taking a 2-0 lead.
Setien bought in Ivan Rakitic in the second half and also had Luis Suarez at the stroke of the hour in place of Antoine Griezmann. The double changes immediately worked for Barcelona as Messi created back-to-back chances that somehow failed to find the back of the net. Barcelona got their third goal through Jordi Alba in the 80th minute of the match when he shot home off a perfect pass from Messi. The Barcelona captain himself got on the score sheet in stoppage time, with the aid of a deflection. Messi looked perfectly fit despite the concerns over his availability in the last few days.
The win puts Barcelona five points clear ahead of Real Madrid’s return on Sunday.
Other results in La Liga on Saturday (June 13, 2020)
Villareal 1-0 Celta
Espanyol 2-0 Alaves
Valladolid 2-1 Leganes