Villareal 0-2 Barcelona: Hansi Flick’s side end the year with healthy lead over Real Madrid
If La Liga had had their way, this game would have been played in the United States, in Miami, making history as the first league game in Europe to be played outside of the country’s borders. But after massive pushback from stakeholders across the continent, and La Liga players staging a league-wide protest, the broadcaster quailed and the plans were cancelled. So Barcelona faced Villarreal at Estadio de la Ceramica instead.
Hansi Flick’s side ensured they would head into the winter break four points clear of rivals Real Madrid with a 2-0 victory that would have been much harder if Villarreal had been disciplined enough to keep 11 men on the pitch. But after a 39th-minute red card was awarded to Renato Veiga with Barcelona already 1-0 up through Raphinha’s penalty, it was always going to be a tall order getting back into the game.
Raphinha was lively from the start and unsurprisingly provided the breakthrough. Cutting inside and driving into the Villareal box from the right with 11 minutes played, he was upended by Santi Comesana for the clearest penalty the referee will ever give in his career. Raphinha converted from the spot.
The forward now has seven league goals in 11 appearances and is finding his groove again after missing 10 games through injury earlier this season. He also seems eager to send a message after being controversially left out of the Fifa Best XI awards earlier in the week, an event that drew a strong reaction from the player’s wife. Flick also spoke about it unprompted in his pre-match press conference, calling the awards “a joke” for excluding Barcelona’s best player last season.
Raphinha could have had a second almost immediately but his shot from distance smacked the bar. Villarreal then had the ball in the back of the net at the other end courtesy of a Jules Kounde own goal, but Sergi Cardona, who provided the dangerous low cross the Frenchman inadvertently turned in, had been offside in the build up.
The home side had some very good opportunities in the opening stages. Nicolas Pepe missed a glorious opportunity with a header that went narrowly wide and Ayoze Perez, with the goal begging, could only fire a tame shot that Joan Garcia smothered easily. Alejandro Balde’s very poor pass was chased down and collected by Tajon Buchanan, but Garcia reacted quickly to save, the ball then ping-ponging between him and the Villarreal winger before Pau Cubarsi thumped it into the stands.
Villarreal’s evening then turned sour when Veiga lunged recklessly into Lamine Yamal and was shown a straight red card. Barcelona expectedly laid siege to the home side’s box and nearly every outfield player in blaugrana directed an attempt towards goal at some point before Yamal found a way through after the hour mark, showing quick feet to receive Frenkie de Jong’s pass and finish past Luis Junior.
Villarreal had a few nice moments afterwards, forcing a superb double save from Garcia at one point, but the result was hardly in doubt after Barcelona’s second.
