- A goal of the Argentine in 76 'unlocks the game for the Catalans
Barcelona beat Granada (1-0) at the premiere of Quique Setién on his bench, starting the second round at LaLiga Santander with three points that allow him to remain in the lead alongside Real Madrid, a start demanded by good work rival until the Andalusians were left with one less in the 69 '.
Leo Messi, the best whoever the coach is, made the only goal of the cold night at the Camp Nou, with a lot of wind too, in the 76th minute, after a robbery by Riqui Puig and the Argentine walls with Griezmann and Arturo Vidal . One of the few times he managed to break the rival defense a Barça at times electrical but at times also lax ideas or verticality in the opposite field, where he lived almost the entire game.
Granada, which won the first leg of the league champion, was once again a solid block and did not give a centimeter. He also tied Messi short, despite the fact that the '10' managed to stand out in his careers and his search for holes, or anyone who tried to invent near the area. 82% was the possession of Barça in the first half, a fundamental weapon for Setién. The first touch, the advanced pressure, the Cantabrian coach wanted to mark his line to follow.
However, with sensitive casualties such as Luis Suarez, De Jong, Arthur – just out of injury – or Dembélé, it was difficult for Barça to capture his dominance in clear arrivals. Of course, Granada had no offensive presence, until Eteki met the post. The best in one hour of the game was Granada until, with one less, he lost serenity behind. The recovery that blessed Riqui Puig was culminated by Messi and Barça ended up comfortable with one more.
Two weeks without a league gave much in the Barca. They started with the draw against Espanyol, another puncture in the last minutes, continued with the loss with the same script against Atlético in the Super Cup and ended with the dismissal of Ernesto Valverde. The expectation for the debut of Setién let intuit changes but not a revolution. It cost Barça to get a result that, in a fight with a Madrid that does not fail, is forced in addition to style.
He won the football of possession although he lacked the verticality slept in recent times and that Setién will have to work. Messi was the only one who had clear ideas, but Granada was comfortable in his advanced defense. Griezmann helped in that combination, while Ansu Fati failed to overwhelm. Barça wanted to press up and accelerate in the last meters, but the shot was missing.
The Argentine also recovered his traditional association with Jordi Alba, but with the passing of the minutes the victory to the points was for the Andalusians. The break did not serve Barça to see the goal path, although the pressure would bear fruit. A robbery from Vidal to Gonalons was not taken advantage of by the Catalan team in clear superiority against the goal Rui Silva and shortly after the club arrived from Granada.
Those of Diego Martínez had the clearest after one hour of the game, but then the second yellow came for Germán. The expulsion was used by Barça to tighten again, with Riqui Puig in the field. The quarryman, whom he hopes to see the Camp Nou more, stole and allowed the two heel walls of Griezmann and Vidal with a Messi savior. Arthur's entry finished securing the ball and the triumph of Barça at the premiere of his project with Setién.
DATA SHEET.
–OUTCOME: FC BARCELONA, 1 – GRANADA CF, 0. (0-0, at rest).
– ALIGNMENTS.
FC BARCELONA: Ter Stegen; Sergi Roberto, Piqué, Umtiti, Jordi Alba; Busquets, Vidal (Arthur, min. 83), Rakitic (Riqui Puig, min. 71); Messi, Griezmann and Ansu Fati (Carles Pérez, min. 80).
GRANADA CF: Rui Silva; Víctor Díaz, Duarte, Germán Sánchez, Foulquier; Eteki (José Antonio, min. 72), Gonalons, Vadillo (Doors, min. 66), Machís, Azeez (Herrera, min. 56) and Carlos Fernández.
–GOAL:
1 – 0, min. 76, Messi.
–REFEREE: Pizarro Gómez (C. Madrid). He admonished Machís (min. 12), Germán (min. 59) and Carlos Fernández (min. 72) in Granada. He expelled Germán (min. 69) for a second yellow.
–STADIUM: Camp Nou