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FC Barcelona hosted Valencia on matchday 22 of LaLiga. Coming off a 6-1 win against Sevilla, Barcelona were running high on momentum but low on freshness. Valencia led by Dani Parejo gave Barcelona a tough fight at home and they were back to do the same.
Valencia opened the scoring through Kevin Gameiro in the 23rd minute. Lionel Messi was tripped just outside the box and Barcelona switched off for a moment, looking for a freekick.
That momentary lapse was enough for Valencia to go on a lethal counter through Rodrigo Moreno and the move was finished by Gameiro.
Eight minutes later, Parejo doubled the advantage for Valencia. Sergi Roberto conceded a penalty and Parejo put the ball out of Ter Stegen's reach into the net.
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FC Barcelona came up with a response in the 39th minute. Lionel Messi curled the ball into the net but only after the referee had already blown for a penalty.
Messi then stepped up to the spot to send Neto the wrong way. In the second half, Semedo made way for Jordi Alba and that helped Barcelona to get more and more lethal during attacks.
Lionel Messi equalized in the 64th minute with a stunning outside the box curler. There were multiple chances which Valencia wasted on the counter thus ending the game in a 2-2 draw.
Here is a look at hits and flops from the game.
#5 Flop: Thomas Vermaelen
Vermaelen returned to the starting lineup after a long time on the bench and then the injury. It is safe to say that this performance wouldn't inspire the coach to start him more often.
He was too slow to react to the counter attacks and snuff out the danger. With a high line of defense, there needs to be an instant tackle or pressure to win the ball back which he didn't provide.
During the first goal, he succumbed to pressure from Rodrigo's pace and didn't even attempt to tackle before Rodrigo squared the ball to Gameiro.
At multiple points, Gameiro and Rodrigo had the easy way with him. In the second half, he made a grave error which was fatal if not for Ter Stegen.
In a two-on-two situation, Rodrigo was driving at the defense with Alba chasing and Vermaelen ahead of him. Rodrigo just slid past Vermaelen as if he wasn't there to open up a clear shot at goal.
The Belgian needs to put this game behind him and focus on the upcoing games, if he would get a chance to play.
#4 Hit: Dani Parejo
Dani Parejo put on a captain's performance against Barcelona. The Valencia midfielder looked solid all-around, both in the attack and in the defence.
He got the first shot on target for Valencia from outside the box. He also got the attempt at goal from close range which was denied brilliantly from Marc-Andre Ter Stegen.
When the moment arrived he stepped up to the spot and put the ball out of Marc-Andre Ter Stegen's reach in the corner of the net.
He looked solid even in the defensive end, making multiple interceptions and also doing a great job orchestrating the two lines of defense. Valencia looked solid for the majority of the game with the two banks of four with Parejo dictating terms.
At the end of the day, Parejo's stats read, one goal, three shots on target, 96% pass success, 48 passes made, three successful tackles with 100% success, and 6 interceptions. This was arguably a Man of the Match performance from Valencia's captain.
#3 Flop: Luis Suarez
Luis Suarez looked far from his best against Valencia. In all honesty, the Uruguayan didn't do much as expected from him. The two solid banks of four held their shape really well, not allowing any room for Barcelona to attack.
In these situations, since Alba started from the bench, there needed to be link-ups with Messi and Suarez. Unfortunately for Barcelona, Suarez was not as sharp as he usually is with his passing. There was no connection between Suarez and Messi, and also Suarez and Coutinho.
There were chances which arrived on counter-attacks in both halves. Suarez's poor control of the ball was a reason why Barcelona couldn't capitalize on them. He couldn't get even one shot on target with both his attempts being blocked by the defence.
He was dispossessed three times on the night. Although Messi was dispossessed seven times, Suarez doesn't drive at the defense as much as him and he was dispossessed in situations where he could have opened up clear scoring chances.
Barcelona would hope for El Pistolero to get his precision back for the Clasico.
#2 Hit: Rodrigo Moreno
The most dangerous and lethal Valencia player on the pitch. Rodrigo was lurking at the halfway line always looking for counter-attacking opportunities, and he succeeded in getting many of them.
After his brilliant hat-trick against Getafe in the Copa Del Rey, people expected this sort of performance from him and he delivered.
Rodrigo's pace was no match for the struggling Thomas Vermaelen and also Sergi Roberto at Left-back.
His involvement in the first goal was massive. He ran the enormous length of the pitch and also picked Gameiro out with a perfect through ball. He looked ominous throughout the first half keeping Vermaelen on his toes.
In the second half too, he was dangerous on the counter, creating multiple opportunities for his team.
The way he slid past Vermaelen to open up space and time was beautiful but he was denied by Ter Stegen. He had another chance off a cross but this time his head was not up to the mark.
However, it was a brilliant day at the office for Rodrigo.
#1 Hit: Lionel Messi
However tough the situation, however stubborn the opponent, when this man wants to get on top, he does it.
When Valencia had a 2-0 lead, Dani Parejo's celebration was as if the job was done. Even with the most stable defense, Valencia couldn't do anything to stop Lionel Messi, apart from dropping his standards a bit.
He created for Coutinho, for Sergi Roberto, linked with Vidal, he did it all. After being denied the spectacular curler and being awarded a penalty instead, he stepped up to the spot and coolly sent Neto the wrong way.
If not for Neto, he would have got more goals. He got five shots on target, three of them denied by Neto, including a high percentage, left-footed bomb. But even though Neto was stubborn, Messi was stubborn as a mule.
When he got the ball from Vidal's pass, outside the box, three defenders blocking his view, he curled the ball with a piece of finesse, around the defense and behind Neto.
The defence couldn't believe he scored from there, Neto put his hands on his forehead, what could he do? For two minutes, Neto was still wandering over how Messi actually managed to score.
This was a bad day at the office for Messi, going by his standards. But he still scored two, still got three key passes, and got five shots on target. If it was any other player then amazing, but Leo, you need to improve in your next game.
If you still haven't seen Messi's terrific second goal.
