The Barça doesn’t fail in Valladolid’s League
Flick undid the rotations for the Champions and the leader came back to not give life to Real Madrid
FC Barcelona defeated (1-2) Real Valladolid at José Zorrilla this Saturday to not fuel the options of Real Madrid in the fight for LaLiga EA Sports, with El Clásico next week in Montjuic to seal the title in matchday 35, and the return leg of the Champions League semifinals against Inter Milan.
The Tuesday match at Giuseppe Meazza after the 3-3 draw in the first leg marked Hansi Flick’s lineup in the Castilian stadium. Much rotation that the German coach had to undo, due to the injury of debutant Dani Rodríguez, Lamine Yamal entered in the 38th minute, and due to Iván Sánchez’s 1-0 lead after six minutes sending the teams to halftime.
The trap set by the bottom team, already relegated, against the title favorite gained strength with that local goal, after pressing in two corners, with a shot that deflected off Ronald Araújo. The lack of connection in the less usual players of Barça was noticeable, little rhythm in the ball despite a vast majority in possession and a couple of shots from Pau Víctor and Ansu Fati saved by André Ferreira.
Valladolid signed their best 45 minutes of the season, standing up to a crowd protesting against the board, but Flick raised the alarms in the dressing room. The entry of Lamine was followed by Raphinha and Frenkie de Jong, who gave Pedri a rest. Barça repeated dominance and this time had accuracy.
The offensive combination of the visitors improved, with more resources and better tuned, and in a Lamine cross, the rebound was sent to the net by Raphinha (1-1) in the 54th minute. Valladolid trembled for a moment, retreated too much, and five minutes later, Fermín appeared alone at the penalty spot to complete the comeback. Álvaro Rubio also made substitutions and a header from Latasa almost equalized.
Barça spared the final blow, with Lamine showcasing his skills and Pau Víctor hitting the woodwork with the best chance, while Antonio Candela prevented Lamine’s goal on the goal line. The leader then tried to keep the ball better, not to suffer defensively, and Valladolid barely troubled the leader. After winning the Copa del Rey and with the focus on the Champions League, Barça did not neglect the league, seven points ahead of a Madrid that faces RC Celta this Sunday.
TECHNICAL SHEET.
–RESULT: REAL VALLADOLID, 1 – FC BARCELONA, 2. (1-0, at halftime).
–LINEUPS.
REAL VALLADOLID: André Ferreira; Candela, Cömert, Cenk, Aznou; Juric (Mario Martín, min.85), Anuar (Ndiaye, min.64), Amallah (Grillitsch, min.73), Raúl Moro, Iván Sánchez (Chuki, min.73) and Sylla (Latasa, min.64).
FC BARCELONA: Ter Stegen; Fort, Araujo, Christensen, Gerard Martín; Pedri (De Jong, halftime), Gavi (Eric García, min.79), Fermín, Dani Rodríguez (Lamine, min.38), Ansu Fati (Raphinha, halftime) and Pau Víctor (Dani Olmo, min.62).
–GOALS:
1 – 0, min.6, Iván Sánchez.
1 – 1, min.54, Raphinha.
1 – 2, min.61, Fermín.
–REFEREE: Muñiz Ruiz (C. Gallego). Booked Sylla (min.8), Anuar (min.37), and Martín (min.90) for Valladolid. Christensen (min.66) and Araújo (min.83) for Barça.
–STADIUM: Estadio Municipal José Zorrilla.