Three talking points from Barcelona 1-1 Espanyol

The Catalan derby had no dearth of excitement and drama on Saturday afternoon when Barcelona and Espanyol faced off at Spotify Camp Nou. The game saw passionate and motive-driven football for ninety minutes.

Goals, penalties, red cards and VAR were involved in equal proportion on the special night which ended in the two parties taking a point each. 14 yellow cards and two red cards were shown in the derby, giving a sneak peek into the nature of the game.

Barcelona’s opening goal came in the first ten minutes of the game, but Espanyol equalised late on from the penalty spot to get back on level terms. Having now dropped two points, Xavi’s men have now forfeited the two-point lead over Real Madrid and both teams must start from scratch.

1. Outrageous refereeing

Mateu Lahoz has carved out a reputation for himself as one of La Liga’s most unreasonable and impulsive referees.

Game-changing scandalous decisions almost always have a direct bearing on the game’s result which explains why he is not a favourite amongst fans or players.

In the recently concluded World Cup, Lahoz officiated Argentina’s Quarterfinal fixture against the Netherlands and was removed from duty immediately after the game for his hasty decisions.

Returning to his officiating role for the first time since Qatar, the referee created riots in the derby.

His decision to send off Jordi Alba for mere argument was unjustified, to begin with, and put Barcelona into a state of clear disadvantage with eight minutes to go.

Yet, two minutes later, he gave two Espanyol players their marching orders. Vinicius saw a second yellow for his protests, while Cabrera was shown a red card for a dangerous challenge on Robert Lewandowski with cleat intent to injure.

When called to the VAR screen, Lahoz witnessed the blatant foul in slow-motion, only to return to the field and let Cabrera walk without even a yellow card. Notably, the player was already on one yellow card.

The referee’s scandalous night continued well into extra time when Javier Puedo threw himself at Dembele’s leg to take down the Frenchman, who was open in front of the goal.

Yet, the 24-year-old got away with just a yellow card when the card should have quite clearly been of another colour

2. Marcos Alonso’s high and low

When the full-time whistle blows, a player is usually classified as either a villain or a hero on the night based on his performance on the field. Rarely, one is forced into deep thought after watching a player as their display could include both highs and lows.

Marcos Alonso had one such game on Saturday. The Spanish left-back opened the scoring in just the seventh minute of the game when he got onto the end of Andreas Christensen’s ball across the face of the goal and headed it in.

He was the hero of the moment and rode on his wave of momentum for a while. He almost scored another, and also set up Lewandowski for a brilliant chance.

In a matter of seconds, the former’s Chelsea star’s game came crashing down in the 82nd minute. The defender stepped on Joselu’s heel inside the box and denied him from receiving his own lofted ball, forcing Lahoz to point to the spot.

On the fateful night, Alonso overwrote his highs with a compensatory low. It was he who helped the team gain the lead, but again his error snatched away two points.

3. Ansu Fati: the Golden goose that stopped giving

When Ansu Fati made his debut in the first team and broke records in every game, there was only one aspect of his play that set him apart – fearlessness.

In a team with Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, Fati did not hesitate to trust his instinct and go for the shot. Indeed, his boot was capable of unleashing some cracking and well-placed shots.

Further, Fati was never one to waste his time dribbling excessively, waiting for an opening. The teenager used to charge forward with a straight-focussed mind and play a direct game with not many complications.

All that has now changed. The La Masia graduate has never been the same since his return from injury, and part of the reason why is that he changed his style of play to match his fitness status.

When Fati gets on the ball now, one no longer gets the X-factor feeling. His predictable dribbling often sees him cut off before he can make it in front of the goal.

Moreover, an element of uncertainty and hesitancy has crept into his attacks which makes them starkly different from the impact-producing player he is associated with.

In 62 minutes on the field, the youngster completed just 20 passes with an accuracy of 87%. He recorded no shots on target and struck two awfully wide. Further, he had no defensive contributions.

It remains to be seen if his contributions improve with more minutes under his belt. Else, there is no shortage of options waiting on the bench and academy for a spot to prove their worth.