Barca 3-0 Sevilla: With a devastating victory over a struggling yet highly-rated opposition, Barcelona shone brightly in the gold of glory. Sevilla showed both of their facets in the game, but the cold clinicality of the Catalan machine killed the game off quite early, causing the match to fall into the total dominance of Xavi’s men by the end.
The first half brought a hasty game as quick attacks and frequent counters dominated the game, from one box to the other. Furthermore, the hosts scared us in the opening 20 minutes, having made multiple shots and getting behind our defensive line frequently. However, we were the ones to open the score, after executing a speedy counterattack with rigid precision to capture Bono’s goal.
The tempo of the game cooled down a bit after the first goal, but the primary weapon of the Blaugranas remained the pace and directness to overcome the Andalusian defence. It worked wonders, and we were brutally effective in carrying it to the end product, registering 10 out of the total 18 shots on target and a vast xG of 4.
The second and third goals were prime examples of this effective, quick attack driving of the Garnet and Blue. In the 35th minute, Koundé conjured the ball to Lewandowski’s chest from the midfield, who scored a classy, acrobatic trademark goal of his.
24 minutes later, a perfectly executed drill after a short corner, like it was drawn with a pen: Raphinha’s cross found Koundé on the far side, then came the re-cross in the centre and the tap-in from Eric García.
Talking about individuals, Jules obviously deserves praise, his intelligence and adaptability allowed him to adopt his new role in the team, and he was rewarded with a brace of amazing assists.
Lewandowski’s brilliance is becoming an everyday routine, the class that was expected from a star of his calibre. The way he gets into quality scoring positions so often and finishes them reliably (1.2 xG by himself – 2.1 xGOT), while also participating in team play is amazing to watch.
Lastly, ter Stegen is well and truly back. The way the German wall started this season is just monstrous. 2.5 PSxG-GA, 3/4 clean sheet, 92.3% save ratio.
With 10 points collected, Barca are back to 2nd place on the table. Now up to the chase of Real Madrid and the league title. Next station: Cádiz. Visca Barca.
