Spanish La Liga: Barcelona vs. Sporting Gijon – Full Time Report (Part 2)
Chances kept on flying around for the Spanish La Liga Champions as Andres Iniesta, Bojan, Xavi Hernandez and David Villa combined well across the 18 yard box of the opposition side. David Villa got a fabulous chance at the half
hour mark but he chose power over technique and drove the ball past the goal post.
Bojan, on the other hand was having a good time on the field and during the 35th minute he managed to outrun two defenders but his foot slipped and the ball went out of play; however, his skill was well admired by the
crowd.
Pichu Cuellar got a booking for wasting time before the half time whistle as chances kept on flying for the two strikers of the Catalan giants, David Villa and Bojan. Villa missed another volley right before the first half and
later it was Andres Iniesta who drove the shot wide as the half time whistle was blown.
Puyol was taken off as Gerard Pique walked in for aerial advantage in the second half while Seydou Keita was taken off for Pedro Rodriguez as another striker was added to the field while Barcelona looked desperate for a goal. Now
Josep Pep Guardiola was playing a custom 4-3-3 formation as three strikers, including 2 wingers were played by Barcelona.
Pedro Rodriguez was seen on the right with Villa on the left as Bojan took his favourite centre forward position. Right from the second half, David Villa and Bojan looked to be frustrated as there were no goals on the score board
throughout the first 45 minutes and it was Villa who made a fine effort on goal as the Sporting Gijon goalkeeper made a marvelous diving save.
However, in the 49th minute, a cross from the Brazilian right back Dani Alves found David Villa who managed to avoid the offside trap this time round. The Spanish goal scoring machine managed to sweep the ball to the
far corner to add to his Barcelona goal scoring tally and helped the home side score the only goal of the night.
After the goal, Sporting Gijon became a little frustrated. Many yellow cards came around after Villa's inch perfect finish and in the 52nd minute it was Botia who fouled Andres Iniesta on the left flank.
Soon in the 58th minute, Sporting Gijon made a change as they brought on Diego Castro for Matabuena. On the other hand, Barcelona were busy attacking the defensive walls of Sporting Gijon as the silent Xavi Hernandez
took a shot from outside the 18 yard box but his effort flew wide. In the 68th minute, De las Cuevas came on for Mate Bilic while Barcelona substituted Bojan Krkic for the newly signed Liverpool player Javier Mascherano.
The Argentinean defender Gabriel Milito was on fire throughout the match but he earned a yellow card in the 78th
minute as he made a rough tackle on the Sporting Gijon striker, Moran.
The free kick did nothing for Sporting Gijon but it was Pedro who capitalized on the counter attack and a wonderful chip by the right winger found Dani Alves in the centre midfield, but the move ended up in nothing as the Brazilian
sensation "over touched" the ball.
However, the match was far from over for both the Spanish sides. Even though it was the Spanish La Liga Champions Barcelona who were winning the game 1-0 and they were the ones who dominated the game throughout, Sporting Gijon
got a late free kick in the 90th minute as Gerard Pique fouled Moran right outside the 18 yard box and got a yellow card because of the late challenge.
Even though they could capitalize from the free kick, they decided to take it indirectly and the shot was well blocked by Javier Mascherano as he dived in front of the striker to clear the ball to safety. Later, the last ball was
thrown in towards Gerard Pique who cleared it and found David Villa who was ready to make a run between the two defenders that faced him but the final whistle was blown to end the game.
Barcelona emerged victorious at the Nou Camp even without their best player Lionel Messi and it was Maxwell who was crowned man of the match because of his amazing efforts at the left flank. However, David Villa was the one who
showed the world that he cannot be counted out and he can replace Lionel Messi when it comes down to goal scoring.
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