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The eighth gameweek of La Liga 2021-22 was filled with twists and turns. The most highly-anticipated matchup of the weekend lived up to the hype and saw Atletico Madrid beat FC Barcelona 2-0 at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium. To make matters more painful, former Barcelona forward Luis Suarez scored Atletico's second goal.
Other title aspirants, Real Madrid and Sevilla, were also in action this weekend. Real Madrid were beaten 2-1 at Espanyol on Sunday while Sevilla suffered a 1-0 defeat at Granada. As made evident by the shocking results, the eighth matchday was far from predictable, and the players on our list had a role to play. Now, without further ado, let's check out the five biggest disappointments from gameweek eight in La Liga.
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Special mentions: Marc-André ter Stegen (FC Barcelona), Toni Kroos (Real Madrid), Nabik Fekir (Real Betis)
#5 Vinicius Jr - Real Madrid
The 2-1 defeat to Espanyol was more down to the defensive incompetence of Real Madrid rather than the attackers misfiring. Still, looking at how Vinicius Jr. started his La Liga campaign, it would not be unfair to call his performance subpar.
In his first six La Liga games this season, Vinicius Jr. scored five goals and provided two assists, emerging as Real Madrid’s second-best forward. Over the last two La Liga games, he has looked a lot more hesitant, a lot more conscious of his shooting abilities.
Yes, he combined well with Karim Benzema against Espanyol, but Real Madrid cannot afford to have a hesitant first-choice forward.
Following another blank at Espanyol, Vinicius has dropped down to third on the Pichichi list, currently sitting behind Real Sociedad’s Mikel Oyarzabal and fellow Real Madrid striker Benzema.
#4 Erik Lamela - Sevilla
After both Real Madrid and FC Barcelona returned home empty-handed, Sevilla had the opportunity to capitalize and climb to the top of La Liga. Having played one game less than the two teams, Sevilla could have matched the table-toppers Real Madrid’s tally of 17 points with a match in hand. Unfortunately, none of the Sevilla players turned up at Granada.
Eri Lamela, who scored three goals in his first two La Liga games, started the match on the right-wing, hoping to threaten Granada. Unfortunately for the visiting fans, he clocked the worst match yet for Sevilla.
He was stagnant throughout the match and ended up losing possession thrice - the highest in the match. He even lost the most duels (11) and was ultimately subbed off just past the hour mark. The match at Granada marked Lamela’s fifth game without a goal in La Liga.
#3 Frenkie de Jong - FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona’s Frenkie de Jong is easily one of La Liga’s best midfielders. Sadly, the Dutchman is yet to emerge as the midfield general Barcelona are desperate for.
Against Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid, Barcelona needed their star man to fire on all cylinders. Instead, they only saw the shadow of the 24-year-old’s former majestic self.
Starting on the right side of midfield, De Jong had no luck penetrating Atletico’s stubborn backline. He moved to the left hoping for a change of fortune but, once again, returned empty-handed.
His passes were accurate, but vertical progression was nowhere to be seen. The former Ajax man only completed one dribble, had no shot on target, miscontrolled the ball twice and failed to create a single chance.
The match against Atletico was arguably his worst performance in La Liga this season, a reflection of the poor form he is currently enduring.
#2 Nacho Fernandez - Real Madrid
Real Madrid defender Nacho Fernandez has long been the club’s most trusted fourth-choice centre-back. With Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane gone, he has become one of the first names on the team sheet this season. But the results have not been flattering.
The Spaniard has been poor in almost every La Liga match this season, contributing to most of the goals Real Madrid have conceded. On Sunday, Espanyol capitalized on Nacho and Eder Militao’s lack of positional sense to score the opener in the first half.
For their second, which turned out to be the winner, Aleix Vidal nutmegged Nacho before beating Thibaut Courtois at the near post.
Nacho’s versatility is invaluable at Real Madrid, but in his current state, he is nowhere close to the player his teammates need him to be.
#1 Memphis Depay - FC Barcelona
Following the departure of Lionel Messi, La Liga side FC Barcelona needed to bring in a dependable goalscorer who did not demand a ludicrous salary. Memphis Depay, who was a free agent at the time, was brought in and has been one of Barcelona’s first-team players.
He salvaged three points for Barcelona in the first three La Liga games, showing what he was capable of on his day. Against Atletico Madrid, he, unfortunately, had one of his worst days in a Barcelona shirt. Thanks to Atletico’s strong command in midfield, he did not have any support from his teammates and cut a frustrating figure.
A couple of good passes he provided were not capitalized on, and he himself only had a single shot on target against Atletico in La Liga.
