Deportivo Alaves 0-5 FC Barcelona: Hits & Flops | La Liga 2019/20
Barcelona finished the 2019/20 season of La Liga in style after an emphatic 5-0 hammering of Deportivo Alaves.
Lionel Messi (twice), Ansu Fati, Luis Suarez, and Nelson Semedo were all on target as the Catalans drew the league campaign to a close on a resounding note.
It was one of those days where the side hit all the right notes, and clinically took apart the Babazorros, who had virtually no answer.
Even though this is a case of too little, too late with Real Madrid already crowned champions last week, the performance was a much needed boost for Setien and co. ahead of the Champions League clash with Napoli.
Here are the hits and flops from the match:
Hit: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
We'll start with the obvious. No matter how Barcelona fare as a unit, Messi almost always tends to be the stand out performer, and today was no different. With two more goals and an assist at the Mendizorrotza, the captain saw off the league season in style and all but wrapped up a historic seventh Golden Boot too.
He was once again the chief creator, operating from a slightly withdrawn role in the vanguard but constantly feeding his attacking corps with wonderful throughballs and defense-splitting passes. Messi was a thorn in El Glorioso's flesh with his mazy dribbles, completing five of them, and topped another excellent outing with two quality strikes, his 24th and 25th of the season.
Flop: Luis Suarez (Barcelona)
It might seem blasphemous to some, but Luis Suarez increasingly looks done at the top. Apart from a few bright spots here and there, he's once again appeared jaded this season and hopelessly off the pace. Whether its his age or the knee surgery he underwent earlier in the year, its hard to shake off the feeling that the Uruguayan is now more of a liability to Barcelona.
He had another stinker today, and despite getting on the scoresheet - a simple tap-in header from Jordi Alba's lofting cross - its the enduring image of him missing an open chance in the first-half that will linger on.
For most of the time, the striker cut a lonely figure up top and made the least amount of passes of all the outfield players in the team. His days of being in the starting 11 might be numbered.