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FULL-TIME, Athletic 2-3 Barcelona: Barça suffered unnecessarily in the final seconds, but they’ve survived and are leaving the Basque Country with all three points. A big win, and a very good performance against a tough team. Well done, boys!
GOAL, Athletic 2-3 Barcelona (Muniain 90’): Bilbao get a goal back. Bad pass from Messi at the back, and Iker Muniain scores a great goal from outside the box.
GOAL!!! Athletic 1-3 Barcelona (Messi 62’): IT’S THREE FOR BARÇA! Patient team move from right to left and the ball finds Griezmann who plays a perfect short cross and Messi hits the ball to the crossbar and into the net!
53min: GOAL DISALLOWED! De Jong finds Messi with a beautiful assist and the captain finds the back of the net, but Leo was just offside and the goal is called off and the decision further confirmed by VAR.
SECOND HALF KICKOFF! Athletic 1-2 Barcelona: And we’re back underway! Come on, boys, let’s finish the job and get this win!
HALFTIME, Athletic 1-2 Barcelona: After a horrible start, Barça found their footing and pretty much dominated the final 30 minutes, with two great goals and at least two more really good chances to extend the lead. And Pedri is just destroying this game right now.
GOLAZO!!! Athletic 1-2 Barcelona (Messi 38’): BARÇA TAKE THE LEAD! WHAT A GOAL!!! Messi plays Pedri through at the edge of the box, and Pedri waits for the captain’s run and finds him with a gorgeous backheel for a great goal by Messi!
GOAL!!! Athletic 1-1 Barcelona (Pedri 14’): BARÇA EQUALIZE! Tremendous effort from Frenkie De Jong to chase down a long cross from Lionel Messi, and he knocks the ball back to Pedri who heads it home!
GOAL, Athletic 1-0 Barcelona (Williams 3’): Counter attack for Bilbao, Iñaki Williams faces up Lenglet in the box, cuts to his right foot and finds the back of the net.
KICKOFF! Athletic 0-0 Barcelona: And we’re underway! Come on, boys!
LINEUPS
BARCELONA
Starting XI: Ter Stegen; Dest, Araujo, Lenglet, Alba; Busquets, De Jong; Dembélé, Messi, Pedri; Griezmann (4-2-3-1)
Bench: Neto (GK), Iñaki Peña (GK), Umtiti, Mingueza, Firpo, Pjanic, Puig, Trincão, Konrad, Braithwaite
ATHLETIC BILBAO
Starting XI: Simón; Capa, Núñez, Martínez, Yuri; De Marcos, Vencedor, Vesga, Muniain; Williams, R. García (4-4-2)
Bench: Ezkieta (GK), Morcillo, Ibai, Córdoba, Berenguer, D. García, Lekue, Sancet, Kodro, Villalibre, Balenziaga, Vicente
WELCOME TO SAN MAMÉS!!! The spectacular home of Athletic Bilbao is the site of a huge La Liga match between the hosts and Barcelona, who come into this one on a six-game unbeaten streak and could make a big statement facing a historically tough opponent in the Basque Country. This should be a fun one, and you’re welcome to join us to follow and comment all the action. LET’S LIVE BLOG!!!
(Note: the comments will be open only when the team news come out, because our commenter people love commenting and sometimes there are too many comments in the comments section)
MATCH INFO
Competition/Round: 2020-21 La Liga, Matchday 2
Date/Time: Wednesday, January 6, 2021, 9pm CET/WAT (Barcelona & Nigeria), 8pm GMT (UK), 3pm ET, 12pm PT (USA), 1.30am IST (India, Thursday)
Venue: San Mamés, Bilbao, Basque Country, Spain
Referee: Carlos Del Cerro Grande
VAR: Ignacio Iglesias Villanueva
HOW TO WATCH, STREAM LA LIGA
How to watch on TV: beIN SPORTS (USA & Canada), LaLigaTV (UK), SuperSport (Nigeria), Movistar LaLiga (Spain), Not Available (India), others
How to stream: FuboTV (USA), Premier Player (UK), Facebook Live (India), Movistar+ (Spain), others
Matchday Thread Rules
We don’t have a lot of rules here, but there are a few things to keep in mind when joining our matchday threads:
Even if the referee sucks or we lose the game, no swearing. It’s just unnecessary. Also, don’t discuss illegal streaming links. Those who do it will be warned, and those who post links will be instantly banned. Finally, be nice to each other. This is a Barcelona community and we don’t need to offend one another.
Have fun with the game! Forever and ever, no matter the competition, VISCA EL BARÇA!