Villarreal vs Barcelona 1-5: Player ratings as Catalan giants record huge victory on the road
- Barcelona cruised to a 5-1 victory against Villarreal on Sunday
- Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha earned braces in huge win
- Barca remain unbeaten atop of La Liga table
Barcelona cruised to a huge 5-1 victory away against Villarreal on Sunday to retain their position atop of the La Liga table.
The Catalan giants were once again unstoppable as they fired five goals past Villarreal's defence to guarantee yet another win, just days after their Champions League defeat to Monaco on Thursday.
Hansi Flick's side sit on 18 points, four clear of fierce rivals Real Madrid and five ahead of Atletico Madrid.
How the game unfolded
It was the hosts who leaped into the game, earning a chance early on as Ayoze Perez delivered a lob finish into the back of the net. His efforts were quickly nullified by the assistant referee's flag, while Barcelona took a sigh of relief and regathered themselves to push on.
The Catalan giants took the opening threat as motivation to get onto the ball. Lamine Yamal came close to earning the first goal of the game, firing a beautiful shot towards the top left corner before it bounced off the post.
Robert Lewandowski wasted no time in gifting Barca a lead, however, tapping in a clever shot thanks to a sneaky pass from Pablo Torre. The Spanish midfielder disguised his assist to slide the ball towards Lewandowski, who took full advantage of Diego Conde's position away from goal to put his side 1-0 ahead.
Yamal and Jules Kounde attempted to double Barca's lead as they unleashed their chemistry down the right wing. They were unable to earn anything from their efforts, but just minutes later Lewandowski swung the ball into the back of the net - earning a brace and throwing Barca into the lead once again.
Villarreal raced back into the game as Perez finally got the chance to etch his name onto the scoresheet after his early chance. He hammered a strike with his right foot to earn his fourth goal of the season and hand the hosts a lifeline.
Just ahead of the break, Barca faced a major blow as Marc-Andre ter Stegen fell to the ground in agony. The shot stopper pedalled backwards in his attempt to gather the ball in the air, landing awkwardly before being stretchered off the pitch.
He was replaced by Inaki Pena - who was handed his first league appearance since February.
When play resumed, it was Barca once again who dictated the pace. This time, it was Pablo Torre who strengthened his side's lead firing a shot towards the box that reached the back of the net after it deflected off of Logan Costa.
Lewandowski was handed the chance to earn himself a hat-trick when he stepped up to take a Barca penalty after Yamal was fouled inside the box. The striker took an uncharacteristically low shot that flew into the post and skewed back out onto the pitch.
But, his miss ultimately did not affect Barca, as soon the floodgates opened. Raphinha delivered his side's fourth goal of the game, slamming home a breathtaking shot from the centre of the penalty area.
Minutes later, he netted again, this time following a magnificent assist from Yamal. The Brazilian volleyed a left footed shot towards the keeper who did his best to prevent it from reaching the back of the net but failed, allowing Barca to take a 5-1 lead.
The game was over before Villarreal had a real chance to respond, allowing Barca to walk away with three points and a huge victory on the road.
Barcelona player ratings (4-2-3-1)
GK: Marc-Andre ter Stegen - 5/10 - Did well to stop Villarreal from earning a second goal before the break but injured himself in the process. Ter Stegen's initial blocks weren't outstanding, but his efforts to keep the hosts silent in the first half didn't go unnoticed.
RB: Jules Kounde - 7/10 - Kounde, once again, was exceptional down the right side of the pitch. His link-up play with Yamal proved to be incredibly useful and he was unfortunate not to earn himself a goal.
CB: Sergi Dominguez - 5/10 - Earned himself a place in the squad with Flick keen to rotate. Often looked out of place but did try to make contributions when needed.
CB: Inigo Martinez - 5/10 - Another defender who tried to make a difference for his side but was ultimately pretty unlucky in his efforts. Managed to scrape by with a few close calls also.
LB: Gerard Martin - 6/10 - A better performance came from Martin against Villarreal, who worked hard in possession. Defended well when isolated on the pitch.
DM: Pablo Torre - 8/10 - Torre put on a real show, creating an argument for Flick to consider him in the starting lineup more often. He earned both a goal and assist and worked hard in Barca's midfield, incredible.
DM: Eric Garcia - 5/10 - Garcia was quiet and didn't act with too much emotion on the pitch. He made simple passes and helped to move the ball - other than that he was unused.
RW: Lamine Yamal - 7/10 - Yamal is a constant, even if he doesn't score he proves to be a menace up and down the pitch. In particular, his assist for Raphinha's second goal was sensational, almost frightening.
AM: Pedri - 6/10 - Pedri took some time to grow into the game, but once he did he commanded some promising play for Barca. He kept his opponent on their toes by maintaining possession.
LW: Raphinha - 9/10 - Raphinha spent most of the first half of the game ensuring his teammates were in the right positions to score, however in the second half he wrote his own story - scoring two beautiful goals. A fantastic performance.
ST: Robert Lewandowski - 9/10 - Scored an early brace for Barca and was unfortunate to miss the penalty to register a third. Regardless, it was still an incredible performance from the striker - who is certainly still that guy.
Substitutes
SUB: Inaki Pena (48' for Ter Stegen) - 6/10
SUB: Marc Casado (59' for Pedri) - 5/10
SUB: Pau Cubarsi (59' for Dominguez) - 5/10
SUB: Pau Victor (59' for Torre) - 6/10
SUB: Hector Fort (81' for Martinez) - N/A
Subs not used: Guillermo Fernandez, Ander Astralaga, Alex Balde, Andreas Cuenca, Ansu Fati, Antonio Fernandez
Manager
Hansi Flick - 6/10 - Chose to rotate his team, especially with mounting injuries, but proved to make the right choices in trusting his younger players. Another strong performance from Flick in the dugout.
