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Questions have been raised about Blaugrana's ability to compete on all fronts after Argentina's rescue of a weakened eleventh player
At the very moment when you think you are out, they bring you back to the competition. That's what happened in the draw between Barcelona and Real Madrid in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey on Friday.
The Catalans have done their best this season to forget the cup, convinced that their deep descent and ultimate triumph over the past four seasons have hurt them in the Champions League.
The Copa del Rey is grueling, with two innings in each set instead of just one. Barca started playing with the reserves in the first leg, losing to Levante and Sevilla, before reversing the situation at home twice.
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The Blaugrana finally gave in, resting against Valencia at the Liga on Saturday. They stumbled on a 2-2 draw.
He extends their lead at the top of the six – point standings, but Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid, second places, can get closer to them when they face Real Betis and Alaves. , respectively, Sunday.
Ernesto Valverde relied on the midfielder pbading on the Arthur machine, opting for Arturo Vidal, even though Sergio Busquets was also suspended.
The coach also faced Sergi Roberto in the left-back in place of Jordi Alba, who is making a sublime season, and Thomas Vermaelen alongside Gerard Pique, at Clement Lenglet's rest.
Valencia took advantage of it. The visitors managed to break out of the stalemate in a controversial manner, with Messi appearing to have been shot to one end before Los Che rushed to the other, under Rodrigo's direction.
The Spanish striker, who managed a hat-trick against Getafe to put Valencia in the semi-finals, slipped to Gameiro, who beat Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
The suspension of Busquets gave Valverde little choice if it was not to make Ivan Rakitic play the role of tenant. And if the Spaniard was there, he might have done more to stop the break.
Valencia's second goal was even more preventable: Sergi Roberto was also in the left-back and on the left-hand side, but Daniel Wbad was trying to stop him from scoring. Valencia skipper Dani Parejo scored a penalty to give his team a decisive advantage at Camp Nou.
However, when you have Messi on your team, you still have a chance, and the Argentinian star pulled a point back from the penalty spot after Lato fouled Nelson Semedo.
It was the 20th goal of Messi's season and the ninth consecutive game in which he found the net in all competitions.
On the 21st after the break, another Messi special – a shot that most players would not have tried to attempt – left Neto goaltender unnoticed by whistling in the lower corner. With a thicket of players on his way, the shot was not played, but the ball was already spinning in the bottom of the goal.
Valverde threw the ball at half-time to summon Alba. The coach was looking for the fruits of the privileged relationship that the defender shared with Messi, while Coutinho was demobilized while the team pursued the winning goal. It was another disappointing night for the Brazilian.
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After the double of his cup against Sevilla, the hope of regaining his confidence was restored, but he showed his fear of the only chance he had, to waste his time on the ball instead of shooting, and the Opening was ruined.
Barcelona could not find a winner and Alba threw the ball with frustration at the final whistle, as they had lost their first points in the league since the 1-1 draw against Atletico Madrid in November.
The pressure and intensity only increase from here and the question will arise again: Can Barcelona handle a war on three fronts? Answers will be found in the coming weeks.
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