Messi shines in sparkling Barca Christmas stroll against Alaves; Sevilla triumph

Barcelona go into the brief Spanish winter break on top of La Liga after a glittering show from Lionel Messi helped the defending champions beat Alaves 4-1 on Saturday.

Real Madrid, who drew 0-0 in Barcelona in the midweek Clasico, can draw level top on 39 points but behind on goal difference if they win at home to Atletico Bilbao on Sunday.

Seville are assured third place over Christmas on 34 points after their 2-0 win in Mallorca.

French star Antoine Griezzman put Barca ahead with a lovely snap-shot from outside the area after a slick exchange with Messi on 14 minutes.

“I needed to score a goal before the holidays, now I can go into them happy with myself,” said the French World Cup winner who has scored just seven goals since his summer move.

“We have a great team with some of the best players around and when we don’t click, well, there’s always Messi.”

Messi had already had a better strike ruled out by a harsh VAR decision, while Mohican-haired Chilean forward Arturo Vidal had tried a dramatic overhead effort that the Alaves ‘keeper just about stopped with his feet.

Vidal bagged a second just before half-time when put into open space on the right as Barcelona overwhelmed the visitors, but they should have gone into the break more than 2-0 ahead.

Pere Pons pulled one back on 56 minute for Alaves with neither Gerard Pique nor the returning Samuel Umtiti on hand as his header flew home from close range.

Even with four defenders around him, Messi was unstopabble on 69 minutes as he unleashed a trademark left foot strike from outside the box.

The goal illustrated why the diminutive attacker recently won a sixth Ballon d’Or. A sweetly-struck Luis Suarez penalty made it 4-1 on 75 minutes.

Meanwhile, Barcelona have been fined 1,500 euros ($1,660) and warned the Camp Nou could be closed after beach balls were thrown on to the pitch during this week’s Clasico against Real Madrid, the Spanish football federation announced on Friday.

Inflatable balls were tossed on to the field Wednesday in a politically charged fixture which originally had to be postponed due to violent demonstrations across Catalonia.

The match, which finished goalless, was held up for 90 seconds as Barca made a substitution in the 55th minute due to the objects on the field.

After the game 10 people were arrested and more than 60 injured in clashes between Catalan separatists and police outside the ground.

Some 3,000 police officers and private security agents had been deployed for the match amid calls for separatists to protest outside Camp Nou during the fixture.

Meanwhile, Eibar defeated Granada 3-0 to end a five-match winless streak in the Spanish league on Friday.

The result ended Eibar’s three-game losing streak at home and left the Basque Country club five points above the relegation zone in 16th place.

Sergi Enrich and Kike García scored five minutes apart in the first half, and Japanese midfielder Takashi Inui closed the scoring in the final minutes.

Eibar won in the league for the first time since early November.

Granada, sitting ninth in the standings, has won only one of its last eight league matches.

Agencies

 

Spanbish League Results:

Mallorca 0 Sevilla 2 (Silva 20, Banega 63-pen)

 Barcelona 4 (Griezmann 14, Vidal 45, Messi 69, Suarez 75-pen) Alaves 1 (Pons 56)