Barcelona fell to their first La Liga defeat since November as the champions were beaten 2-0 at struggling Celta Vigo.
Ousmane Dembele, who came off the bench in Barca's 3-0 win over Liverpool in last week's semi-final first leg, was one of few regular starters to face Celta as coach Ernesto Valverde made 11changes after clinching the title last Saturday.
The win took Celta on to 40 points and a step closer towards guaranteeing survival but it meant 19th-placed Rayo Vallecano became the first team to be relegated, after a 4-1 thrashing at the hands of Levante left them on 31 points from 36 games.
Uruguay forward Maxi Gomez gave Celta a deserved lead in the 67th minute, sliding to the floor to divert a low pass beyond Barca's reserve goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen, after the home side saw a goal ruled out for a marginal offside after a VAR review.
Celta's captain and talisman Iago Aspas then sealed the away side's win by converting from the penalty spot after another VAR review ruled that Barca's Samuel Umtiti had handled the ball.
Barca, who lost for the first time since a 4-3 defeat to Real Betis nearly six months ago, have 83 points while second-placed Atletico have 74 after losing 3-0 at Espanyol earlier on Saturday.
21:51
That's it for today, goodbye!
21:54
Celta now sit in 14th in the LaLiga table, five points above the drop zone with two games left to play. Some of the teams below them are still yet to play this weekend, but Escriba will now be turning his attention to their next match against Athletic Bilbao as they continue their fight to stay in the league. Despite the loss, Valverde will already be looking ahead to his side's Champions League game against Liverpool on Tuesday, where they take a 3-0 advantage to Anfield in the semi-final.
21:51
Celta Vigo take a big step towards LaLiga safety with a 2-0 win over Barcelona. The home side made a bright start to the game but it took them until the second half to gain the advantage. Araujo thought he'd given Celta the lead when he found the back of the net following Cillessen's poor sace, but it was disallowed by VAR for a very tight offside decision. Gomez did then put his team ahead with a brilliant effort on the stretch that beat the goalkeeper at his near post. The points were then sealed for Celta when they were awarded a penalty by VAR which Aspas confidently converted. Barcelona were without their star players, who were being rested for their Champions League game, but they didn't create enough chances to cause Celta any real problems in the game.
21:4090+6 minsminute by minute
FULL-TIME: CELTA VIGO 2-0 BARCELONA.
21:4090+5 minsminute by minute
A brilliant throughball from Lobotka picked out Aspas who is running at two Barcelona defenders. He takes the ball into the box before hitting his shot, but Umtiti gets across quickly to put it out of play.
21:5290+3 minsminute by minute
Barcelona are keeping the ball well at the minute, but they aren't doing anything with it. Vidal has the chance to play a throughball to Boateng who is making a run towards the box, but he chooses to play it sideways to Vermaelen instead.
21:5290 minsminute by minute
Gomez has gone down near the centre circle and it looks like he's struggling with cramp. The medical team have gone across to him, but it doesn't look like it's a serious injury.
21:3690+1 minsminute by minute
It looks like Escriba doesn't want to risk keeping Gomez on, so he replaces the striker with Beltran.
21:3287 minsminute by minute
PENALTY TO CELTA! After checking VAR, the referee points to the spot and Celta have a chance to double their lead. It struck Wague from close range but it was judged that the handball was intentional.
21:3388 minsminute by minute
ASPAS SCORES FROM THE SPOT! His run-up to the spot was calm and he sent Cillessen the wrong way as he struck his penalty into the left side of the net. 2-0 Celta!
21:3186 minsminute by minute
The Celta players and fans are all asking for a penalty as they feel that it struck Wague's hand in the box. The referee initially waved the claim away but he's now going over to the screen after VAR spotted something.
21:3085 minsminute by minute
Second change for Celta now as Boudebouz goes off and is replaced by Jozabed.
21:5283 minsminute by minute
Whenever Barcelona move into the final third, their passing becomes sloppy and they're struggling to get in behind the Celta defence.
21:5281 minsminute by minute
Celta are keeping the ball well at the minute and are just slowing the pace of the game down as they start to run down the clock.
21:2378 minsminute by minute
Mallo goes across to take the corner for Celta this time and he puts his cross into a good area in the box. Araujo rises highest to get on the end of it, but he sends his header wide of the post.
21:2479 minsminute by minute
Vidal is shown a yellow card after catching Yokuslu with a bad foul.
21:2276 minsminute by minute
GOOD CHANCE FOR MENDEZ! Umtiti plays a short pass that is intercepted by Gomez. Celta work the ball to Mendez on the edge of the box and he tries to curl his shot into the near post. He can't get his effort on target though and it flies wide of the goal.
21:1974 minsminute by minute
Celta win a corner and Boudebouz goes across to take it. He whips it into a good area in the middle of the box and Araujo rises highest, but it misses the defender and Barcelona are able to get it clear.
21:1772 minsminute by minute
Boateng is shown a yellow card after he kicked the ball away in frustration.
21:1670 minsminute by minute
Barcelona are keeping the ball well following the restart as they try to push upfield and find a way back into the game, but their passing in the final third is sloppy and they gift possession straight back to Celta.
21:1671 minsminute by minute
First change of the game for the home side now as Boufal comes off to be replaced by Mendez.
21:1568 minsminute by minute
Barcelona are able to make their change after the goal. Todibo went straight down the tunnel when he left the field with the medical team and Murillo is now on in his place.
21:1367 minsminute by minute
GOMEZ PUTS CELTA AHEAD! The cross from Boudebouz was put into a great area of the box and Gomez got ahead of Vidal to reach it first. He took it first time, on the stretch and beat Cillessen to nestle his shot into the bottom corner. 1-0 Celta!
21:1467 minsminute by minute
Boudebouz was given a lot of space on the right wing which allowed him to get his head up and spot Gomez's run into the box and pick him out with a perfectly weighted cross.
21:1865 minsminute by minute
Todibo pulled up with a hamstring injury following Gomez's chance and the medical team are quickly across to give him some treatment. It's not looking good for the defender though as he limps off the field and Barcelona are down to 10 men for the time being.
21:0964 minsminute by minute
GOOD CHANCE FOR GOMEZ! Aspas picks up the ball in the middle of the field and switches play to Boudebouz on the wing. He's in a lot of space and takes his time to put his cross into the box where Gomez jumps to get on the end of it. His header is straight at Cillessen though and it's a comfortable save for the keeper.
21:0661 minsminute by minute
Barcelona are once again just trying to slow down the pace of the game after Celta's recent spell of pressure. They're slowly playing out from the back as they try to find some space to move into in midfield.
21:0762 minsminute by minute
Vidal is coming on for Barcelona's second change of the game in place of Arthur.
21:0459 minsminute by minute
Todibo almost plays himself into trouble as he's quickly closed down by Gomez and Aspas, but he does really well under pressure to turn with the ball and pick Arthur.
21:0257 minsminute by minute
ANOTHER GOOD CHANCE FOR BOUFAL! He drifts into the box from the left wing when he receives the ball and tries to curl the ball into the roof of the net. He's not far away from finding the goal, but his effort is just over the crossbar this time.
Source
Comments
Post a Comment