FC Barcelona Player Ratings: 0-1 win in Portugal

Midfielders

Romeu – 5/10

He wasn’t very good in this one, due to a variety of factors. Firstly, the back line and ter Stegen gave him a few passes that they probably shouldn’t have, as there was no time and space for him to control and turn around. Those made him look bad. However, most of it was on him. He just didn’t have the quality in this one to really make a difference in the midfield, and he needed Gündoğan to drop deeper at times to help him out. Defensively, he wasn’t his usual self either. Not the greatest match from Oriol, and one that perfectly encapsulates why he’s a short-term option and not a more permanent fix.

Gavi – 7/10

Gavi was good in this one, but not as good as he has been lately. He did an adequate job in possession, showcasing a few moments of quality. However, he was pushing it with the fouls all game long, and it wasn’t too surprising when he received his second yellow. This Barça midfield just can’t quite seem to grab control of these matches, and Gavi was part of that today.

Gündoğan – 7/10

He’s a player with a ton of quality, and he shows it every match. He sprung a very nice pass to Ferran for his goal, and looked good going forward on breaks and half-spaces. However, he sometimes struggles to receive the ball in central areas and string together some passes there. He isn’t the most mobile or pacey player, and without midfield help he can look isolated sometimes. Porto were very compact in this one, and they didn’t make it easy for him. It doesn’t help when they’ve got Romeu as the link between the defense and midfield, but Gundo has had these problems before when Romeu wasn’t on the pitch. Defensively he doesn’t afford much either at this stage.

Fermín – 6/10

Fermín couldn’t quite replicate the form he showed last match. He lost possession on a few occasions, despite playing few minutes. However, Barça were mostly pinned back to defend the last few minutes, and so was Fermín.

Roberto – 6/10

Didn’t do much besides defend and commit a pretty harsh foul, which resulted in a yellow card. He played the last 20 minutes, and for not having played in several weeks, he wasn’t bad. However, he didn’t do anything good either.