Tough game against Villareal ends in draw

It was certainly a tough game last night at the Madrigal stadium where Barca played Villareal. Molina’s men brought the game to Barca and played their hearts out. Both teams had missed chances and Villareal had a goal disallowed for off-side. Barca were perhaps a bit lax in finishing and Cesc of all people squandered a few good chances to put the Blaugrana’s firmly in the lead.This is another setback for Barca after beating Real Madrid in La Copa del Rey the other day.

They needed to capitalize on their win over the merengues and they were left stunned by the result.Leo Messi was his usual busy self but also squandered a few chances, the first being a cheeky little lift over the keeper which somehow went just wide of the net.It seemed more of a Premier league match than a La Liga match as it was furious end to end stuff. Pep was getting anxious and both teams saw decisions going the wrong way. Villareal had a clear penalty and one tackle that probably deserved a red and not a yellow by a Villareal player was not deemed so, much to the dismay of the Barca coach.

So, with Barca now trailing by seven points in the Spanish league behind leaders Real Madrid who beat Zaragoza by a comfortable 3-1, time is running out for Pep to play catch-up. With Andrés Iniesta out for at least 3 weeks for injuring himself in the clash last Wednesday in La Copa del Rey, Guardiola has to come up with a plan B.

Pep said after the game:

“Being five [points behind] is better than seven,” he added. “We have been too attentive to the things they do well, we have lacked luck when putting the ball in the net but my assessment is that I am satisfied, especially after last week’s work.”

The semi-final clash will see them meet up with Valencia, a team they drew with in September. If they manage to beat them, they may have to face  Basque side Athletic Bilbao who Barca drew with in November.