Barcelona 5-2 Real Betis: 4 talking points | LaLiga 2019/2020

After kicking off their LaLiga title defence with a 1-0 loss away to Athletic Bilbao at the San Mames on matchday one, Barcelona needed an urgent response against Real Betis to get their season back on track.

The Blaugrana issued a perfect response, defeating their visitors 5-2 at the Nou Camp to calm Catalan nerves and get their campaign up and running.

Barcelona came into the match occupying the unfamiliar position of 13th on the points table, but their emphatic victory was enough to send them four places up into ninth spot, three points behind table-toppers Atletico Madrid.

In this piece, we shall highlight four talking points from the fixture.

#4 Barcelona thrives in Messi's absence

Messi watched the game from the stands

Lionel Messi has been Barcelona's talisman for the best part of the last decade, and this serves as a no-brainer, as the Rosario native is among the best to have ever graced a football field.

Given his extreme importance to Barcelona, it stands to reason that the club depend on him massively to deliver in matches, and Messi's mercurial abilities mean that he steps up more often than not.

However, football is very much a team sport, and Barcelona's squad is replete with numerous world-beaters, which makes their over-dependence on Messi somewhat ironic.

The club's record goalscorer missed the season opener due to a calf injury. He was in line to come back against Betis, but was ruled out of the clash.

Fans would have feared the worst when a Sergio Busquets mistake led to Nabil Fekir giving Real Betis the opener against the run of play, especially since Lionel Messi was not on the field of play.

However, as it happened, the home side did not let their heads drop, and rallied back to complete their comeback victory.

While Lionel Messi is still the most decisive player in the squad, the fact that he is human means that he cannot be relied upon 100%, and with their display against Real Betis, Barcelona showed that they are capable of stepping up in the absence of their captain.

#3 Loren proving to be a viable goals source for Real Betis

Loren has scored two goals in two LaLiga matches this season for Real Betis

Lorenzo Jesús Morón García, popularly known as Loren joined Real Betis in 2015, but spent three seasons with the reserve side until making his bow with the senior team ahead of the 2016/2017 season.

The 25-year-old had starred for the reserve side, scoring 43 goals from 92 league matches across the lower divisions, and he contributed 13 goals from 48 LaLiga matches over the last two seasons to help Real Betis to 6th and 10th placed finishes respectively.

This term, the Marbella native has begun life brightly for Los Verdiblancos, scoring two goals from two matches, to lay his marker as the go-to man for goals at the Benito Villamarin Stadium.

Having opened his account in the home defeat to Rayo Vallecano on matchday one, Loren continued with his fine form with a well-taken goal against Barcelona, capitalizing on a loose ball from Antoine Griezmann before raffling into the top-right corner.

Though both of his goals have ultimately come in lost causes, Loren has shown that he could grab the mantle of goalscoring for Betis this season.

#2 Anssumane Fati becomes the latest teenager to make his Barcelona bow

FC Barcelona v Real Betis - La Liga

Barcelona is famous for being a developmental turf for the honing of young players' abilities, and this has been made possible over the years due to the effectiveness of their La Masia academy.

La Masia is widely regarded as one of the premier football academies in the world, and numerous players have progressed through the ranks to cement their place in the pantheons of football. Over the last week, Barcelona were hit with an injury crisis in attack, with Messi, Luis Suarez and Ousmane Dembele all battling different forms of injury.

This left Ernesto Valverde scrambling for options to bolster his attack line, and naturally, reserve players were looked at. Carles Perez was a beneficiary of this mishap, as the 21-year-old was handed a start against Real Betis, and among the substitutes was a certain Anssumane Fati.

Ansu Fati is a 16-year-old winger who was born in Guinea-Bissau and has earned rave reviews with his performances for Barcelona B.

This was the first time he was named to the Barcelona bench in an official match, and indeed, Barcelona had to take permission from his parents, as LaLiga rules forbid the inclusion of players below 18 for late-night matches except with the consent of their parents.

Fati stepped onto the field for his Barcelona debut when he was introduced in place of Carles Perez, and at the age of 16 years 09 months 25 days, became the third-youngest player to represent the Blaugrana.

#1 Antoine Griezmann finally comes to the fore

Griezmann scored a brace and had an assist

Antoine Griezmann became Barcelona's marquee signing of the summer as he completed his much-publicized €120m transfer from Atletico Madrid.

The 28-year-old had proved his mettle for five years under Diego Simeone, and it is expected that he would help relieve some of the goalscoring pressure on Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez.

However, heading into the game against Betis, the French international had yet to truly kick into gear for his new side, as he had an indifferent pre-season campaign and was sub-par in the defeat to Athletic Bilbao.

The injuries sustained by Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi and Ousmane Dembele left Griezmann as the only fit senior forward in the squad, placing an extra burden of leading the attack on his shoulder.

If there were doubts over his ability, the World Cup winner silenced his critics with an almost perfect display against Betis.

Griezmann opened his Barcelona account in the 41st minute when he connected with Sergi Roberto's cross on the volley, and even though he did not connect cleanly, the ball still trickled past Dani Martin to draw Barcelona level.

Five minutes after the restart, he put Barcelona into the lead, showing great technique to find the top corner and to leave Martin helpless in goal.

The icing on the cake came in the 77th minute when the former Real Sociedad man found himself in a good position to score a hat-trick, but unselfishly squared for Arturo Vidal to put Barcelona 5-1 up.

Big things are expected of Griezmann at Barcelona, and as he showed against Real Betis, he is more than capable of delivering at the levels expected of him.