Malaga 1-2 Barcelona: 5 Talking Points

Barcelona beat Malaga to keep the pressure on rivals Atletico and Real MadridLionel Messi scored on his return to hand Barcelona a crucial 2-1 win against Malaga and move to the top of the standings. Munir El Haddadi gave the holders an early lead with a simple tap-in into an empty net, before Spanish youngster Juanpi levelled the matters for the hosts just minutes after the half hour mark.Los Boquerones were the better side in the first half but saw the winds knocked out of their sails when Messi scored after just 7 minutes into the second stanza. Malaga threatened to equalize on a few occasions later on, but the visitors clung on and walked away with all the three points.Let’s discuss the major talking points spruced up from the Rosaleda arena today.

#1 A game of two contrasting halves

Malaga held the upper hand in the first half, but Barcelona emerged dominant after the break.

Malaga had set the stage for Barcelona, prepared to keep things tight at the back and frustrate the visitors. However, their plan was busted as early as 63 seconds when Munir broke the deadlock. But from there on, the home side dominated the proceedings.

Pressing high up the park and threatening in the air, Malaga were very dangerous going forward and deservedly equalised through Juanpi when the striker capitalised on a mistake by the Barca backline. The holders looked very shaky at the back and flaccid in the attack, but the second half was a different ball game altogether.

All the frailties displayed by the Blaugrana in the first half were non-existent in the second, and a returning Lionel Messi set the tone when he struck a beautiful acrobatic volley to seal the winner early after the restart. Although Malaga showed great character whilst trying to find the equaliser, the men in yellow were still a notch above.

It was a game of two contrating halves, but in the end, it was the quality that separated the two sides.

#2 Munir continues to flourish

Munir has been in a bright run of form of late.

Munir El Haddadi made blistering start to his Barcelona career last season when scored against Elche in his debut in the league opener, only to fizzle out in thin air as the seaosn progressed. The Moroccan-Spanish forward found first team chances hard to come by, and spent most of the remainder of the season in the peripheries.

Now into his second season with his boyhood club, the 20-year old is thriving again after a sloppy start. Munir struck the opener to take his tally to 6 for the season, his 4th in 2016. Messi released Suarez on the right as the Uruguayan striker teed up with Munir to tap into an empty net.

The young Catalonian gun has hit a rich vein of form and has proved to be a really good back-up. With Neymar out of action today, Munir made light of his absence with a terrific performance, for he just continues to flourish in Barcelona shirt.

#3 Barcelona defence tremble under pressure

Barcelona struggled in defence against Malaga

Although Malaga manager Javi Gracia had planned to frustrate the visitors by keeping things tight at the back, it was actually his side's high pressing that caused more problems to Barcelona. The Catalan giants have a history of struggling against teams that prefer all out attack, and against Malaga, that flaw came out glaring.

The Albiceleste's attacking troika of Charles, Juanpi and Duje Cop threw kitchen sink at Barca's makeshift backline, and its effect was there for all to see as the back four appeared shaky and nervous. The Barcelona rearguard looked uncharacteristically error-prone and were punished for the same when Juanpi struck a looping shot into the net.

Malaga had Barcelona's numbers for most of the first half and came close to equalising on numerous occasions in the second. Although the defending champions ultimately got the job done, today’s game exposed their defensive vulnerabilities that other teams would now exploit.

#4 Enrique\'s decision to choose start Vermaelen backfiresr

Vermaelen continued to be poor in his showings

Barcelona boss Luis Enrique opted to rest Gerard Pique for the trip to the Costa del sol and unfathomably opted to play Thomas Vermaelen in the position, overlooking the usual suspect Marc Bartra. The gamble was risky one and certainly backfired the manager.

The Belgian was the hero when the sides met at Camp Nou earlier in the season as he netted the only goal of the game, but here, he was nowhere near to being the savior that he was that day.

Vermaelen cut a stuttering figure right from the off and Malaga had a nice time in rolling over him. The former Arsenal skipper made a few clumsy fouls and also got himself booked early in the first stanza.

In sackcloth and ashes after watching his rueful performance, Enrique hauled Vemaelen off at the break in favour of Jeremy Mathieu.

#5 Messi - The Messiah for Barcelona, once again

Messi was once again the difference maker for Barcelona

Barcelona wizard Lionel Messi has lifted his side out of the lurch for umpteen times in the past, and now adds another game to the long list. The Argentinian maestro struck a brilliant acrobatic to win the tie and collect all three points for the holders.

After the injury worries against Athletic Bilbao last weekend, Messi missed the Copa clash against the same opposition in the midweek, but returned to the line-up after being deemed fit. And suffice to say, he was back with a bang.

Messi was involved in the opening goal when he released Suarez down the right channel for the Uruguayan to square off with Munir to tap home into an empty net, and also struck the winner that sealed the all-important victory for Barcelona.

Ever since the inception of the stellar ‘MSN' troika, Messi has had to share the limelight with his other two counterparts Neymar and Suarez, who have grabbed some pieces of pie off him. But with a match-winning performance today, the reigning Ballon d’Or winner reminded everyone that he's still, what everyone fondly call him, the Messiah.