Although the beginning of the era without Messi was a great victory, Barcelona stumbled in the second match. Ronald Koeman’s side left the field with a 1-1 draw at Athletic Bilbao in La Liga on Saturday night.
Barca was ahead by a clear margin in possession of the ball in the match (6 percent). But Bilbao kept their defense close by attacking Muhurmuhu. The hosts took 17 shots, of which 7 were on target. On the other hand, Barca was able to aim 3 of 9 shots.
Memphis Depay equalized in the 85th minute after Inigo Martinez’s goal in the 50th minute gave the hosts the lead. Both teams have seen crossbar misfortune in this match. Barcelona defender Eric Garcia left the field after seeing a red card in the last minute.
There is no doubt that Barą¦¾a are looking for a new hero after Lionel Messi left. Supporters can have high hopes for Depai. The Dutch forward scored his first goal for the club. If luck helped, he could have scored another goal to win the team.
Bilbao easily outscored Barca in this match. From the start of the match, Inaki Williams and Ohian Sunset put pressure on Barca’s defense. Bilbao could have won if Sunset’s great effort had not hit the crossbar.
Barca star defender Gerard Pique left the field in the middle of the first half. His replacement, Ronald Araojo, scored a great goal but it was disallowed by a foul by Martin Braithwaite. The eventful match was finally decided in a draw. However, after winning one point, Barca has risen to the top of the list.