Barcelona cruised to a 4-0 away victory vs Mallorca yesterday evening.
It was a good away trip for the Blaugrana at the Son Moix stadium.
Barcelona netted four times with Arturo Vidal, Jordi Alba, Martin Braithwaithe, and Lionel Messi as the scorers.
The hosts put in a decent performance but couldn’t produce anything of substance.
Former La Masia player Takefusa Kubo was particularly impressive for the hosts. The 19-year old Real Madrid loanee showed glimpses of his quality but it proved futile in the end.
The away win marked the return of Barcelona to La Liga action after a 98-day hiatus.
Here’s what we learned from the victory.
Barcelona ready for title push
The players looked fit and ready to go right from the start. Arturo Vidal opened the scoring inside just two minutes after some good work from Frenkie De Jong and Jordi Alba.
After that the team kept ticking and eventually got three more goals to wrap up the game.
This result means Barcelona maintain their lead at the top over rivals Real Madrid and the players seem rearing to go and ready for the season’s final stretch.
Away woes could be over
The away win yesterday was a total contrast to Barça’s previous struggles away this season.
This could be due to the lack of fans present for the home side.
The enforced serenity of away atmospheres could prove beneficial for the Blaugrana as they look to secure the La Liga title for the ninth time in twelve years.
Braithwaithe fits
Martin Braithwaithe put in a brilliant performance on the night.
He scored, and linked will with his teammates and looked like a player at home in his surroundings rather than a panic buy.
When Suarez was set for his return, the Danish international was kept on the pitch and instead Antoine Griezmann was taken off.
The Frenchman struggled to make an impact on the game and Braithwaithe’s showing could prove worrisome for him going forward.
Messi still the heart
Barcelona once again looked to their star man for inspiration throughout the game.
Barring Vidal’s opener, Messi was directly involved in all goals for the Blaugrana on the night.
He set up two and scored the fourth in the last minute of the game to wrap up the points in a customary ten out of ten performance.
Lionel Messi has now scored 20+ goals in TWELVE consecutive LaLiga seasons:
✓ 08/09 (23)
✓ 09/10 (34)
✓ 10/11 (31)
✓ 11/12 (50)
✓ 12/13 (46)
✓ 13/14 (28)
✓ 14/15 (43)
✓ 15/16 (26)
✓ 16/17 (37)
✓ 17/18 (34)
✓ 18/19 (36)
✓ 19/20 (20)No beard? Absolutely no problem. pic.twitter.com/gcPZ1v5r3B
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) June 13, 2020
Messi continues to set new records and Barcelona know that they can still depend on their talisman for the foreseeable future.