The Poland striker waited for his chance to attack, then capitalized in the last seconds of play to give his team the victory. Robert Lewandowski is to blame for Barcelona’s crucial three points over Valencia. A late goal scored by the Polish striker off of a cross from Raphinha gave the away team a 1-0 victory.
Lewandowski was left alone in the box by Ansu Fati and Ousmane Dembele’s underwhelming performances for the visitors, and Ferran Torres flubbed his lines late in the game when given a golden opportunity. In El Clasico, Real Madrid defeated Barcelona 3-1 to hand their rivals their first LaLiga loss of the year.
However, the former Bayern Munich forward patiently awaited his chance to strike and demonstrated that he can always be counted on with a crucial intervention in stoppage time. He had more league goals and assists per 90 minutes excluding penalties going into the game than any other player in Germany.
Coach Xavi will be happy to have prevented Real Madrid from extending its lead at the top of the table by earning another three points, but the match raised some questions. While too many members of the starting XI underperformed, Jules Kounde and Eric Garcia sustained injuries, leaving the coach with issues to resolve in the upcoming weeks.
The Performing Side:
Robert Lewandowski: The Polish striker had a quiet night overall as players like Ansu Fati and Ousmane Dembele were unable to locate him for the first hour of the game. But he remained vigilant right up until the end and was there to score the game-winning goal, demonstrating that he is truly invincible and still capable of winning games for the Camp Nou team.
Raphinha: He took over for the underwhelming Ansu Fati and significantly improved the team with a sweet pass that allowed Lewandowski to score the game-winning goal. Xavi will undoubtedly give the Brazilian’s request for a spot in the starting XI some thought now.
The Losing Side:
Ousmane Dembele: This was one of the French winger’s less impressive displays; he is a frustratingly inconsistent player. Dembele had a lot of the ball, but he had trouble producing anything for Barcelona and lost it far too frequently. He appeared to be an entirely different player than the one who scored and contributed three assists in their 4-0 victory over Athletic Club last week.
Marcos Andre: Samuel Lino’s goal early in the second half gave Valencia the impression that they had gone ahead. Unfortunately for the hosts, the goal was ruled to be illegal because Marcos Andre touched the ball with his hand as it entered the box. He claimed Jules Kounde had shoved him, but there was no need for him to extend his hand in that manner, and it cost his team a crucial goal.
Sergio Busquets: Barca had a few underwhelming individual moments in this game, but the 34-year-old cannot afford to keep performing poorly. How long before Xavi gets tired of his mediocre performances? Given that he made such little impact on this game before being removed just before the hour mark, this ought to be one of his final starts for a while.
The Defensive Side:
Marc-Andre ter Stegen: Even though the home team attempted a few offensive plays, he only needed to make two saves to keep Valencia from scoring.
Alejandro Balde: Balde, a 19-year-old right-back, put forth a good effort. He attempted to move forward to aid his side in generating something while making accurate passes.
Jules Kounde: Barcelona suffered a major setback at the end of the game when the center-back got hurt and had to be replaced by Gerard Pique. If the injury turns out to be significant, it will be a big loss because he had been playing brilliantly the entire game.
Eric Garcia: He did not look fantastic before being hurt in the first half and had to be replaced by Marcos Alonso. The Barcelona defense’s weak spot.
Jordi Alba: The seasoned left-performance back wasn’t the best because he didn’t generate much offense for his club.
Many of Xavi’s players in this game fell short of expectations, but the coach did not hesitate to make some crucial substitutions early in the second half, and they eventually paid off when substitute Raphinha was able to assist Lewandowski in a way that Fati and Dembele were unable to.
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