Messi lifts Barcelona closer to Atletico

Lionel Messi scored a goal and added an assist to lead Barcelona to a 2-0 victory over Sevilla on Saturday afternoon at the Estadio Sanchez Pizjuan.

Overall, it was a very good performance from the Catalans, beginning with a revamped formation that laid the groundwork for a solid first 45 minutes, capped by Ousmane Dembele‘s opener. Sevilla responded nicely in the second half, but the greatness of Messi proved one hurdle too many for the hosts, as the Argentine scored late to complete the scoreline, which now lifts Barcelona to within two points of LaLiga leaders Atletico Madrid.

An injury in pre-match warm-up to starting goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen made it seem like the German would have to be a late scratch, however he recovered in time for the opening whistle. Ronald Koeman elected to go with a back line of three centre-backs, while Jordi Alba and Sergino Dest played more as wing-backs than traditional full-backs. Antoine Griezmann found himself on the bench once again, meaning Dembele was the man tasked with helping Messi up front. Read More