Yesterday, Barça unfortunately lost 2-1 against Real Madrid at the Di Stéfano stadium. Benzema and Kroos scored for Real Madrid, while Mingueza scored Barcelona's discount (which came from a good Messi pre-assist) which in the end wasn't enough to change the result of the game even after Messi hit the post trying an Olympic goal. Messi's stats were: 1 pre-assist, 2 SoT, 1 woodwork (7 in total), 0.62 xG, 7 dribbles, 2 key passes, 9 SCA, 0.83 xA, 10 ground duels won, 1 aerial duel won, 3 fouls won, 1 tackle, 1 interception, 5 ball recoveries, 7 pressures (1 successful), 2 crosses, 2 long balls, 59 passes, 99 touches. This won him the MoTM according to WhoScored and got him as high as a 9.86 rating from Infogol.
This game was crucial for Barça's title chances, and they blew the opportunity away. Still, the race is very contended between Real Madrid, Atlético Madrid, and Barcelona, with only 1 point between all 3 of them.
Messi still leads as the Pichichi and he hopefully wins the MVP as well (as he should). But now, the priority shifts to the Copa del Rey final which will be played next Saturday against Athletic Bilbao, hoping to get revenge from the Supercopa de España loss from January.
With this game, he also broke the record for most appearances in El Clásico, beating Ramos' 44 with a 45. Hopefully, Barça can put themselves together before the end of the season, but until then, I'll see you in the next blog.
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