5 Matches That Sum Up Barcelona's Brilliant Season

Modified May 08, 2018 08:28 GMT

FC Barcelona v Juventus - UEFA Champions League — FC Barcelona

#2. Barcelona 1 - 0 Atletico Madrid (March 4, 2018)

Barcelona v Atletico Madrid - La Liga — Lionel Messi's free kick was enough to send Atletico out of the title race

Barcelona won the La Liga title mathematically against Deportivo La Coruna. But, it was their clash against Atletico Madrid on the 4th of March, 2018 that technically decided the title race.

After reducing Barcelona's lead on the table to just 5 points, Diego Simeone's men got the privilege to finally narrow it to 2 and put themselves back in contention for the La Liga. This was a very important game for Barcelona and it proved to be a decisive factor in the title race.

Both teams started brilliantly. The Blaugrana were strolling the ball around nicely, dominating the possession and attacking fluently. Atletico Madrid, on the other hand, defended well, stopping a number of Barcelona advances and were threatening on the counter-attacks.

After several minutes, no team was able to break the deadlock. The Rojiblancos defended intensely and kept the ball away from the danger zones. Therefore, Barcelona remained calm, dominating the possession and waiting for the ultimate chance to pounce on their title rivals.

That chance came in the 25th minute after Thomas Partey brought down Lionel Messi at the edge of the box. The Argentine stepped up to take the resulting free-kick, beating Jan Oblak with a perfect shot that went straight into the net.

After going 1 goal down, Atletico pushed for an equalizer but Barcelona defended well to deny them any hope of a comeback. The Blaugrana maintained their lead till the final whistle to send the Rojiblancos out of the title race.

About the author

Jidonu is a European and international football news writer at Sportskeeda. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism and has around 7 years of previous experience working with the likes of Tribuna and SportRaba, Jidonu has a good eye for detail and has the ability to created cohesive articles, and reporting exploits have also led him to exclusively cover the 2018 FIFA World Cup in the past.

Jidonu’s tryst with football started after watching the 2002 FIFA World Cup final between Brazil and Germany, being mesmerized by Ronaldo and Ronaldinho. Barcelona philosophy and approach towards the game under Pep Guardiola further fueled the burgeoning love for the sport, and he has been a Culer ever since.

Unsurprisingly, Lionel Messi is his favorite player and is the one true GOAT for him over Cristiano Ronaldo. The 2022 FIFA World Cup final, where Messi's brace led to La Albiceleste lifting the cup left a lasting impact on him. His love for Messi also sees him follow Major League Soccer apart from Europe’s top five leagues.

In his free time, Jidonu raps and produces music, and also enjoys reading and swimming.

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Edited by Zeeshan Ali