Barcelona won their first La Liga game of the season thanks to a fantastic 4-1 win against Real Sociedad in the Ketel van anuta on Sunday evening. The two teams had a wild first half, but Barca showed their superiority in the closing period, taking all three points on the road, thanks in large part to a spectacular come on by Ansu Fati.
FIRST HALF
Xavi Hernández decided to send his Barça troops out in an ultra-offensive 3-2-4-1 formation designed to suffocate Sociedad and attack the entire half. It started perfectly after 50 seconds, thanks to a brilliant solo from Alejandro Balde and a superb assist from Robert Lewandowski on his first competitive goal for the club.
But La Real five minutes later he equalized with a strange goal from Alexander Isak, and after a frenzied start, the game was square again. But the madness started just as both teams turned a football game into a basketball game with non-stop, up-and-down action with constant counterattacks and big chances for both sides.
Barça’s suicidal formation left them wide open against a fast-moving, dynamic Sociedad attack, while the visitors couldn’t cope with the attack. Blaugrana‘s pace and skill on the counter. There were plenty of key moments, but somehow no other goals were scored.
Marc-André ter Stegen made two incredible saves in the half, while Ferran Torres and Lewandowski each missed a big chance on the other side. There was also a lot of physical play and a lot of fouls, and the crowd only added to the craziness with their constant noise.
At halftime, a wild 45 minutes ended with a goal for both sides and the promise of even more fun in the closing period.
SECOND HALF
The pace of play slowed a bit in the second half as Sociedad couldn’t maintain the same intensity with their pressure, while Barça took better care of the ball and didn’t allow easy counter attacks. The home team thought they would take the lead on a fixed stretch, but Robin Le Normand was offside and the goal was disallowed.
The two defenses looked a little more organized as the half progressed, but Barca slowly began to find more space with their passing and movement, and one key change made all the difference: Ansu Fati came off the bench and immediately assisted the second goal with a sensationally obsolete pass to Ousmane Dembélé, who shot the ball into goal and gave the visitors the lead.
Just two minutes later, Ansu was again heavily involved in a goal when he got a pass from Pedri into the penalty area and played perfectly in the path of Lewandowski, who doubled the lead with his second goal of the evening. With a crucial advantage in the last 15 minutes, Xavi turned back to a 4-3-3 to make his team more organized at the back and the Blaugrana started to run out of time by keeping possession of the ball.
The Catalans continued to attack for the decisive fourth goal, which came with 10 minutes to go when Lewandowski’s pass landed in the path of Ansu Fati, who calmly passed the ball into the net to make it 4-1 to make it 4-1. to guarantee victory. Sociedad tried to score a second goal in the closing moments, but Barca remained organized and the final whistle gave them all three points anuta.
This was just as tough as expected in the first half, but the depth of the squad and Xavi’s courage and excellent game management made all the difference in the second. A huge result, an excellent performance and a brilliant evening for Lewandowski and Ansu Fati. Perfect Sunday.
Real Society: Remiro; Elustondo, Zubeldia, Le Normand, Munoz; Zubimendi; Mendez, Silva (Turrientes 71′), Merino; Isak (Navarro 70′), Kubo (Cho 71′)
Goal: Isaac (6′)
Barcelona: Ter Stegen; Araujo, Christensen, Eric; De Jong (Roberto 85′), Gavi (Kessie 85′); Dembele (Alba 72′), Pedri, Ferran (Fati 64′), Balde (Raphinha 64′); Lewandowski
goals: Lewandowski (1′, 68′), Dembele (66′), Ansu Fati (79′)
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