Barça continues its climb after grabbing three hard-fought points in Elche, where it came back from Fidel’s opening goal to end up winning 1-2 thanks to a VAR penalty. The Blaugrana climb continues to settle in the Champions area.
Barcelona’s visit to Elche might seem like a simple way out, but the Barcelona dressing room feared Francisco’s team, which from the outset amply justified the respect it created among the Barcelona coaching staff. Clinging to their best weapons, which are an impressive physical display, a stony solidarity and a military tactical order, Elche knew how to handcuff Barcelona.
Xavi opted to rest Ferran and give Dembélé the starting line-up. The Frenchman was in the first part at the usual level, starting many things and finishing very few. And that the team was constantly looking for him with long trips behind Mojica’s back. Trying to play in the center of the field was almost impossible under the pressure of Francisco’s pit bulls.
Elche had a short tie to Barcelona that could only surprise with surprise arrivals from the second line. Frenkie de Jong had two and both were sung chances, but in the first the Dutchman finished off quickly and predictably after a rebound from Badia and Diego González took the ball over the goal line. On the second occasion, Frenkie stood alone against the Catalan goalkeeper and he telegraphed where the shot was going to go a quarter of an hour before shooting. Badia saved the ball without problems.
Elche arrived less, but with more impetus, especially in the band of Mojica, who was a brushcutter who physically surpassed Dani Alves. A center of his was wasted by Tete Morente, who shot high against a Ter Stegen already beaten beforehand.
Nor was the German goalkeeper much better when Pedri, for fear of putting his leg, rejected a ball from behind that fell to Fidel, who took advantage of the fact that Alves measured poorly and when he wanted to arrive he was no longer on time and crossed the ball against a Ter Stegen who reacted late again, although in the second half he saved the 2-1 with a save against Pere Milla. With 1-0 the match was going to be very uphill for the Blaugrana and Xavi reacted by giving Ferran Torres a come-on at the break.
The entry of the Valencian striker brought a fang to Barça. As soon as he left, he placed a center that nobody could finish off, he missed a clear chance and caught a goal after a quarter of an hour after a center by Dembélé, two minutes later a clear shot went high. With Torres, Barça intimidated an Elche that did not give up going on the counterattack.
Xavi redoubled his commitment to the attack giving entry to Memphis and Adama to end up playing with a completely different front than the one that started the game, but Badia, who against Barça is always phenomenal, defended the place based on saves.
But what Badia could not stop was the penalty from Memphis, decisive in the minutes he played. Barça’s top scorer forced the penalty at the hands of Barragán, who decreed the VAR (Hernández Hernández did not find out about this play either) and transformed it. Elche ended up locking up Barça, protesting two hands that the VAr did not consider and the game was closed before calling another penalty on Adama. Barça has eleven days without losing and continues to rise.