Spanish Super Cup: Barcelona vs. Sevilla – Half Time Report
The first half of the intense Super Cup match was all about Barcelona, but no-one can be too sure of the outcome of the match just yet, as even though it was all Barcelona in the first half of the first leg, it was Sevilla who came back during the second half to make the score line from 0-1 to 3-1.
Talking about Barcelona, they started off with a very strong side at Nou Camp. The reserve goalkeeper for the Spanish side that won the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and the first choice for Barcelona, Victor Valdes, was standing between the two poles as the match kicked off. The defensive four were a little different as Carlos Puyol did not feature in the first half and it was the Frenchman Eric Abidal who started the game as a centre back. Maxwell was given the option to play as a left back while Gerrard Pique and Dani Alves took their positions as centre back and left back respectively. With Yaya Toure having left the team, Pep Guardiola tested his side with two defensive midfielders, Seydou Keita and Sergio Busquets. Both of them performed well throughout the first half as they were passing the ball around well. As a central attacking midfielder, it was the Catalan mastermind Xavi Hernandez who took charge of the ball to help his attackers score a few goals. At front it was a pretty experimental sight, as Pedro was taking up the left flank along with Bojan in the centre while the amazing Argentinean youngster Lionel Messi was at his favourite right wing position.
On the other hand, Sevilla did not play Kanoute nor Luis Fabiano at the front as they gave them a rest for their tough game against Braga on the coming Tuesday. The number 1 for the team, Andres Palop, however, did take his place between the two poles to help his team with his amazing goalkeeping skills. The four defenders that featured were Cala, Escude, Dabo and Konko, and Fernando Navarro, Romaric and Capel took their places in the midfield as Negredo played as a sole striker for his side.
The match kicked off with Barcelona dominating the game with their classic one touch passing as they did not let their opponents take the ball much. In the 12th minute, Barcelona started to threaten their opponents as they kept the ball in their half and tried to penetrate their defence. In the 14th minute, however, things changed for Sevilla altogether. The Spanish youngster, Pedro, made a blasting effort on goal and the ball deflected off a Sevilla defender, Konko, as Barcelona started to lead the match 1-0. Barcelona kept on picking up momentum after the first goal as Sevilla was trying to defend their 3-2 aggregate. During the 23rd minute, Bojan came close to scoring a goal but the shot was struck wide but it was in the 25th minute when the amazing midfielder Xavi Hernandez gave a typical 25 yard through ball to Messi, who made no mistake and converted the ball into a goal. Now Sevilla was under pressure as Barcelona were winning on the away goals aggregate.
With Barcelona back at the driving seat, they started to move the ball around a bit too much and soon Romaric earned himself a yellow card. Barcelona were controlling throughout the latter stages, and in the 42nd minute, Keita came across his best moments of the game and came inside the 30 yard area and gave the ball to Dani Alves. It was Alves who made a run down to the penalty area and gave an inch perfect pass to Lionel Messi, who finished the shot with a little chip on the near post.
The game might seem all but over for Sevilla, but as said before, no one can be too sure about it just yet. They came back in the first leg and they may come back in the second as well. Just wait for the match to finish and things might just turn around for any of the teams.
Tags: