Messi gamble pays off as Barcelona stays atop La Liga with 7-1 win over Osasuna

BARCELONA – As Lionel Messi and Barcelona walked through the players’ tunnel before a 7-1 rout of Osasuna on Wednesday, the Camp Nou faithful unveiled a banner thanking Lionel Messi for his 500 goals with the club, the last of which had been the dramatic winner against Real Madrid in El Clasico.

At kickoff, a hum that sounded like a swarm of bees overtook an unusually cold and wet night as chants of “Messi! Messi!” enveloped the stadium. The noise is nothing new in Catalonia’s cathedral to football, but Sunday’s heroics at the Santiago Bernabeu seemingly made the chants carry slightly more meaning, just as they do seemingly every time the little magician pulls a lion out of his hat (a rabbit would be too simple).
Considering Osasuna is at the foot of La Liga and Barcelona played only three nights earlier, the decision to start Messi seemed questionable. Add in the fact that Messi caught a sharp Marcelo elbow that drew blood in Madrid, along with his usual allotment of targeted kicks in El Clasico, and Luis Enrique’s decision went from questionable to seemingly reckless.

However, the Barcelona manager did leave Luis Suarez, Andres Iniesta, Jordi Alba, Sergi Roberto and Samuel Umtiti out of the starting lineup, while Neymar served the final game of his three-match ban. So, more than usual, Enrique called upon Messi to be Merlin as the opponent remained focused on his every move with a side full of reserves flanking the football deity in his shrine.

So, what did Messi do?

He scored two goals and earned the corner that produced another. When he went to the bench just past the hour mark, Barcelona led 4-1 and had all but secured a three-point lead over Real Madrid before Real played at Deportivo La Coruna. Even if its rivals won to remain level on points, Barcelona would wake up at the top of the La Liga table on Thursday morning.




Incredibly, a brace is becoming the norm for Messi. For the fifth time in his last six league games, the 29-year-old Argentine netted a double. It’s no coincidence that the one game he didn’t score proved to be Barcelona’s only defeat over that stretch.

Without Suarez and Neymar, Messi played a bit further forward and central than he usually does. On his first goal, he raced in behind the defense and uncharacteristically seemed to bobble the ball at his feet. He regained control and managed a cheeky flick that gave Osasuna keeper Salvatore Sirigu no hope of keeping a clean sheet. Life would get worse for the Italian as the night wore on.
Struggling Barcelona role players Andre Gomes and Paco Alcacer both bagged braces, but both will struggle to find time on the pitch with Iniesta, Neymar and Suarez all available on the weekend.

While this night belonged first and foremost to Messi and his increase from 500 to 502 Barcelona goals, the game served as yet another reminder that Messi-plus-10 is a never a bad strategy. Also, the night should be remembered for Javier Mascherano‘s first goal for Barcelona.

Mascherano’s moment arrived shortly after Messi left the pitch. Denis Suarez went down in the penalty area and match referee Jose Luis Montero pointed to the spot in front of the section of fans that beats drums and chants the loudest. At the urging of the supporters and his teammates, the former Argentina captain, who had incidentally struck the woodwork earlier in the match, ran to the penalty spot.

Mascherano seemed as worthy a penalty-kick taker as anyone else for Barcelona, even though he had never scored a goal for Barca. Since arriving at the Camp Nou in 2010, Mascherano had made nearly 200 appearances and won every available trophy. The opportunity was there to change the one notable zero on his Barcelona record.

Of course, Mascherano scored.
When the full-time whistle blew, the scoreboard read 7-1. Barcelona secured its place at the top of La Liga until the weekend, when Messi and company play away against Espanyol in the heated, controversial Catalan derby.

Source:Sports.yahoo