So, the new era ushers in. Barcelona are now without their artist Lionel Messi but the canvas has to be painted. New artists must rise. The game against Real Sociedad showed a glimpse of what to expect from Barcelona in the upcoming season.
A Martin Braithwaite brace, Gerard Pique‘s poetic goal and Sergi Roberto’s late goal sealed the victory for the Catalans. The Blaugrana did falter a bit, late in the second half, after being 3-0 up, conceding two goals in three minutes. For brief five minutes, the deepest of despairs mingled with undying hope of La Real salvaging a result against Barcelona but Roberto killed every last bit of hope with his stoppage time goal.
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Barcelona started strongly, displaying best bits of their football in the first half. Depay, Eric Garcia, Emerson Royal and Nico Gonzalez all made their Barcelona debuts. The Catalans won their first home game 4-2 in presence of fans, giving delight to the supporters who were unhappy with the departure of Messi. Barca now faces a tricky away trip to San Memes on 21st August.
Here are the Barcelona player ratings:
Neto – 6
There was very little Neto could do to stop Mikel Oyarzabal’s brilliantly struck free kick. Apart from conceding two goals, Neto did a respectable job, especially with his long ball distribution. Real Sociedad pressed hard hoping to take advantage of Neto’s slightly weak distribution compared to Barca’s first choice in goal, Marc-Andre ter Stegen.