Finally, after the international break ended, we got to see Messi play once again. A game dominated by Barcelona could not break the deadlock until added time, giving Barcelona 3 crucial points since they are now 1 point away from Atlético Madrid (who lost against Sevilla). Dembélé's winner will prove to be vital if Barcelona wins La Liga. Messi's stats were: 2 SOT (7 in total), 0.36 xG, 4 dribbles, 1 nutmeg, 5 key passes (1 chance created), 0.21 xA, 9 SCA, 4 ground duels won (16 contested), 1 aerial duel contested, 2 fouls won, 5 pressures (none successful), 2 long balls, 1 cross, 46 passes, and 85 touches, a MoTM performance from him.
He remains the best player in La Liga by a distance, and aside from the MVP and the Pichichi, Messi looks to win La Liga itself as well. Another thing to note is that Messi, unfortunately, didn't get G/A this game, ending his 14-game G/A streak in La Liga which started all the way back against Valencia on December 19th, 2020.
And, of course, let's not forget Barça's tribute to Messi's at the beginning of the game, bringing his whole family in as well, to commemorate Messi's 767+ games at Barcelona, a nice gesture to his legendary status in the club.
With the recent international break having seemingly done more harm than good to Barça's form, hopefully, they can keep winning games and perhaps finally snatch away Atlético's leadership over La Liga which has lasted so long.
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