Barça no longer depends on itself

Barça gave the Sánchez Pizjuán the possibility of continuing to depend on himself to win LaLiga by not going from a draw to zero against Sevilla in a match in which both teams fell apart on the pitch of an empty Pizjuán. Both teams had their moment to take the match, but there is no doubt that Barça lost more in the draw as evidenced by the fact that Ter Stegen ended up on the last play of the match going up to finish off the corner kick. Now, the ball is on the roof of Madrid, who if he were to win at Anoeta would be the new leader.

Setién chose to surprise in the lineup up front. Aware that he was facing one of the most physical teams in the League, he chose to put Braithwaite and leave Griezmann on the bench. The rest of the cast was as expected with Rakitic and Arturo Vidal responding to Sevilla's midfield.

The bet went well for the Blaugrana coach and the starting Barcelona completed its best 45 minutes in a long time. The presence of Suárez, who returned to the ownership, changed the spirit of a team that found the Uruguayan pivot to support all the exits and gave a sensation of remarkable danger before one of the best pairs of central LaLiga as it is the one that they form Koundé and Diego Carlos. The first of them, in addition, was the protagonist in both areas. In the 10th minute he shot cross after a lateral free kick and ten minutes later he avoided with a providential jump the goal from Messi from a direct free kick.

The game ran with a Blaugrana domain to which the local team responded with plays on set pieces. The pressure after Barça's loss was excellent and Rakitic took over the midfield while the dreaded arrivals by the local band through Navas, Ocampos and Reguilón were conspicuous by their absence. In this field, thanks to the remarkable match of both Jordi Alba and Semedo.

But after the hydration break Sevilla settled and took the ball from Barcelona, who saw how his first moment of superiority could not be seen as an advantage on the scoreboard.

The magnificent first half, which did not make us think that these teams had two games in eight days after three months without competing he ended a tangana between players from both teams.

Given the wear and tear, the unknown was to see which of the two teams was able to keep up with the game. Both technicians had five changes to make and both had enough arsenal on their benches to set the course for the match.

The first to move tab was Lopetegui, who entered Banega in the middle of the game due to a blurred Oliver Torres, that as soon as he left, he already gave the impression that the game could pass through his feet.

Engaged in Banega, who did everything with sense, Sevilla began to take charge of the game against the physical decline of Barça. Ter Stegen avoided with a strong hand at the near post a shot by Ocampos after a Braithwaite blunder before Navas that quickly took a free kick and minutes later the German goalkeeper had to be used against a counter from Munir, who left his post to Suso. Sevilla continued to cool off before the paralysis of Barcelona, ​​which had alarmingly lowered its revolutions. If the first part of the start was for Barça, the second was for Sevilla.

To change things, Braithwaite left the field for Arthur to enter to try to control a game that was going down the drain. For Barça it was a matter of life and death that the game did not become a correcalles, because Lopetegui sought to raise the revolutions with Gudelj and En-Nesyri.

Barça managed to stop the bleeding a bit with more control of the ball and Messi shot a foul that Valclik deflected to corner. Barça breathed as it shook the dominance of Sevilla, which threatened the counter and Setién decided to risk it with Griezmann instead of Arturo Vidal. The trident had a quarter of an hour to accomplish three fundamental points.

The match ended in scares in both areas. Suárez had it for Barça, Reguilón innocently failed against Ter Stegen when no one could with his legs anymore. The last corner kick, in which the Barcelona goalkeeper went up to finish knowing that these two escaping points can be worth a League. Barça is no longer dependent on itself.