Barcelona did not reach high levels of performance at any time in the match and deserved a 0-0 draw against the valiant Girona, as Xavi’s team increased the distance between him and second-placed Real to 13 points.
After a heavy defeat at home to Real Madrid (0-4) that eliminated them from the Copa del Rey final, Barcelona returned to the Camp Nou on Monday night (10/4) knowing that a win over Girona would jump to +15 from Carlo. Ancelotti’s team, which lost last Saturday to Villarreal (2-3) at the Bernabéu.
Although the motivation of the Xavi players was high, they were unable to impose themselves on their opponents on the grass in the Catalan mini-derby in the 28th round of the Spanish League, as the big stages were few for the Blaugrana team (especially at the conclusion of the first and second part) The score came 0-0 naturally, marking their first home goal in 2023.
A result that allowed “Barcelona” to increase its tally to 13 points, ahead of its eternal rival, Real Madrid, which was celebrated at the same time by their compatriots, as this was the first time that they were able not to concede a single goal in a duel between them. In sixth place, total appointments in La Liga.
the match
The mini Catalan derby set a fairly good pace in the first 15 minutes and during this time both teams had moments to send the ball into the net (highlight for the hosts in the ninth minute, as goalkeeper Gazzaniga prevented a wonderful goal … own goal), but The sequel was not the same.
The visitors closed out all areas and took advantage of the Xavi players’ inability to pick up the tempo and were not threatened, with the leaders’ only two chances coming in the space of two minutes.
In the 36th minute, Rafinha received an excellent pass from Fati and took the penalty kick but was beaten by Gazzaniga (first home final) while in the 37th minute, Araujo hit the return shot after a corner kick and the Girona goalkeeper kicked it wide, firing the ball back. The ball before it completely crosses his own goal line.
And the situation did not change in the second half either, as Barcelona still played slowly and slowly on the verge of collapse and Girona missed an unimaginable opportunity to equalize in the 56th minute. Then when Castigianos came out on the back of the opponent’s defense and found himself alone against Ter Stegen in a non-recurring four-way, but he He missed badly and the match remained scoreless.
An hour later, Xavi’s side dominated possession and tried to threaten with Lewandowski as the main threat, but Girona’s good defensive work prevented them from creating the big stage.
It took going into the game in the last quarter for Xavi’s side to apply more pressure, with their good chances coming later, in injury time.
At 90+4′ Gavi scored his first final home goal in the second half, with a superb header that was saved into a corner kick by Gazzaniga, while at 90+5′ Lewandowski attempted a coveted goal, but his heel stopped at the foot of an opposing defender to seal the 0-0 tie. 0 between the two teams.
- Barcelona: Ter Stegen, Araujo, Cute, Garcia, Balde, Roberto (46′ Kesier), Busquets, Gavi, Rafinha (75′ Alba), Lewandowski, Fati (68′ Torres)
- Girona: Gazzaniga, Arnau, Bueno, Lopez, Hernandez, Romeo, Chigankov (71′ Riquelme), Martin (84′ Fernandez), Borja Garcia (46′ Alex Garcia), Villa (61′ Coutho), Castigianos (60′ Stuani)
Round 28 results
- Seville – Celta 2-2 (43′ En Nesiri, 81′ Acuna / 89′ Rodriguez, 90 + 3′ Pasiencia)
- Osasuna – Elche 2-1 (71′, 84′ Ezalzuli / 44′ Morede)
- Espanyol – Athletic 1-2 (90′ Darder / 22′ I. Williams, 75′ N. Williams)
- Real Sociedad – Getafe 2-0 (45 + 2′ Oyarthabal, 60′ Kumbo)
- Real – Villarreal 2-3 (16′ auto. Torres, 48′ Vinicius / 39′, 80′ Tsukueze, 70′ Morales)
- Valladolid – Mallorca 3-3 (33′ Perez, 68′ Amalach, 86′ Moncu/53′, 90 + 4′ pen. Muriki, 58′ Morlanes)
- Betis – Cadiz 0-2 (53′ penalty. Alcarrath, 59′ Ramos)
- Almeria – Valencia 2-1 (49′ Melero, 58′ Babek / 61′ Castiggio)
- Rayo Vallecano – Atlético 1-2 (85′ F. Garthia / 22′ Molina, 24′ Hermoso)
- Barcelona – Girona 0-0
Program of the 29th round
- 03/14 22:00 Rayo Vallecano – Osasuna
- 4/15 15:00 Villarreal – Valladolid
- 04/15 17:15 Athletic – Real Sociedad
- 04/15 19:30 Betis – Espanyol
- 4/15 22:00 Cadiz – Real
- 4/16 15:00 Girona – Elche
- 04/16 17:15 Getafe – Barcelona
- 4/16 19:30 Atletico – Almería
- 04/16 22:00 Valencia – Seville
- 04/17 22:00 Celta – Mallorca
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