Highlights: FC Barcelona 6-0 Club León; Luis Suarez makes his Barcelona debut
Barcelona triumphed to a staggering 6-0 victory in the Joan Gamper Trophy against Mexican side Club León, with Brazilian forward Neymar making his comeback to football with a brace after being briefly out of action while suffering with a fractured vertebra during the 2014 FIFA World Cup, and also one of Barcelona’s newest signings Luis Suarez making his cameo in the famous Red and Blue jersey.
Line-ups
Barcelona: Bravo - Alves, Mascherano, Mathieu, Alba - Rakitic, Busquets, Iniesta - Rafinha, Messi, Neymar
Subs: Masip, Montoya, Pique, Bartra, Song, Xavi, Sergi Roberto, Luis Suarez; Samper, Munir, Sandro, Grimlado
Club León: Yarbrough - Marquez, Edwin, Magallón, González - Cárdenas, Elias, Vázquez, Peña - Boselli, Rivera
Subs: C. Martínez, Pineda, Ortíz, Navarro, Sabah, Caicedo, Castañeda, M. Bravo, Derley, Delgado, Maz, Ríos, Rocha
Barcelona 1-0 Leon: Lionel Messi (3’)
Lionel Messi was quick enough to be off the mark, scoring the first goal of the match within the first five minutes with a header through a deflected cross from Neymar from the left side of the pitch.
Barcelona 2-0 Leon: Neymar (12’)
Neymar doubled the lead for the Catalans with a chip over Leon goalkeeper William Yarbrough following an accurate through ball from Andres Iniesta.
Barcelona 3-0 Leon: Neymar (44’)
The injury had no say over Neymar’s composure as he racked up a brace before half time with a cheeky back-heel goal following a pass from Lionel Messi.
Barcelona 4-0 Leon: Munir El Haddadi (55’)
Coming on as a substitute for Neymar, Barcelona youngster El Haddadi Munir made the faith of boss Luis Enrique count as he rounded up a shot through a pass from Dani Alves who received the ball following a sublime pass over the top from Ivan Rakitic.
Barcelona 5-0 Leon: Munir El Haddadi (78’)
18-year-old Haddadi completed his brace with a well composed shot into the bottom corner through a direct pass into the box from Sandro.
Barcelona 6-0 Leon: Sandro (90’)
Sandro completed the rout at full time with a goal following a pass from Xavi.
Luis Suarez makes his Barcelona debut
The Spanish giants reached an agreement with Liverpool for the signing of Luis Suarez for a fee reported to be £75 million.last month, and, it was unsure when he was going to make his debut for the Catalan team as he is serving a ban for four months by FIFA after he was found guilty of biting Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini during a group stage match in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
However, despite having his four-month ban from all forms of football upheld by the Court of Arbitration for Sport last week, the Uruguayan striker made his Barcelona debut after coming on as a 75th minute substitute for Rafinha.
It surely comes as a surprise to many supporters as the ban imposed was supposed to be for all football activities, friendlies included. Although according to NBC Sports, “Suarez can continue to play in friendlies for Barcelona and Uruguay, plus train with his new team until his ban is over on Oct. 26. Only then will Suarez be allowed to play in competitive matches for club and country.”
He was given the number 9 shirt, and was cheered by the fans.