Quique Setien debuted with an important victory in his first game as the new coach of Barcelona. At the Camp Nou, Barca saw Granada make a though game and even hit Marc-Andre Ter Stegen’s post.
However, the team that’s got Messi has got everything. With a goal from the Argentine, the Catalan team won by 1-0 and returned to the top of the Spanish La Liga’s table.
Playing against a Granada completely closed and well posted in the defense, Barcelona had a certain difficulty to create chances to score. Messi was the one that had the best chances of the Catalan team in the first moments of the game, in free-kicks. In the two that he took, the number 10 went inches from opening the scoring.
In the second half, Barca returned with the same intensity and kept pressing Granada. The home side was trying to score a goal at any cost. But it was the visitors that had the first best chance of the second half – on Granada’s only dangerous attack in the second half. Eteki shot and the ball exploded on Ter Stegen’s right post.
However, the ball on the post didn’t make Barcelona stop. In fact, they pressed even more for a late winner. It’s true that it got easier as Granada’s Sanchez was shown a red card. Down to 10-man, things got way harder for the visitors as Barca finally opened the scoring.
In a great piece of togetherness from the Catalan side, Vidal received in the box, passed the ball to Messi and the Argentine, with an accurate shot, put it into the corner of goalkeeper Silva to give the triumph to the Catalans.
It was Messi’s goal of number 500 over the last 500 matches the Argentine played for Barcelona.
With the 3 points, Barca has now 43 points (the same as Real Madrid) and are the leaders of La Liga. Granada remains with 27 points, in the 10th position. For the next Matchday of Spanish La Liga, Barcelona will face Valencia, away, on next Saturday. Granada will face Sevilla on the same day.