Men of La Mancha: Barca All About Messi
The Argentine produced another remarkable performance on Sunday, as Barcelona picked up a hard-fought win over Real Zaragoza.
By David Mosse
Mar 22, 2010 10:22:00 AM
Lionel Messi
For all his individual brilliance, Lionel Messi has always been considered an important cog in a well-oiled machine, a view that only gained strength with his national team struggles in the past year. But Messi is literally carrying Barcelona at the moment, helping the Catalan giants keep pace with Real Madrid and making a mockery of suggestions that the system made the player.
The system is very much broken at Barcelona right now because of injuries and a lack of contribution from Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Xavi sat out Sunday's match away to Real Zaragoza, but Messi didn't need much help, as he fired another sensational hat-trick, including a brilliant solo effort in the second half that earned the 22-year-old a standing ovation from the home supporters.
Messi also won a penalty kick in the closing moments -- after Zaragoza had closed to 3-2 with a pair of goals from Adrian Colunga -- which Ibrahimovic converted to seal an important victory. Barca remains level on points with Madrid, while Messi now enjoys a comfortable lead in the race for the Pichichi thanks to a remarkable run of nine goals in the past four league games.
Only Gonzalo Higuain poses any kind of threat after the Real striker scored for the 20th time this season (five behind Messi) in a come-from-behind 3-1 win over Sporting Gijon. The Merengues overcame a sputtering start against Manuel Preciado's very game side, as Rafael van der Vaart and Xabi Alonso added second-half goals to ensure at least one Madrid team enjoyed a happy weekend.
Quique Flores spent part of last week downplaying suggestions that Atletico Madrid might still challenge for a Champions League spot, and the players promptly backed up his words with a putrid display in a 4-1 loss to Mallorca on Sunday. Los Colchoneros remain unable to string together two convincing performances in a row and probably have too much ground to make up.
But Atletico's inability to get back in the race won't be for a lack of opportunities. Sevilla looked like taking charge a few weeks ago, but Manuel Jimenez's side is struggling again and unlikely to regain its top form before the end of the season. Saturday's 2-0 defeat at Espanyol dropped the Andalucian club two points behind Mallorca, a team with only two away victories in the entire campaign.
Taking care of business at the Ono Estadi has proven enough for Los Barralets to keep pace, and if Mallorca can find a way to collect more points away from home, Gregorio Manzano's side will be the front-runners to claim the fourth position. The next seven days represent an interesting test, however, with a trip to Santander on Wednesday and a showdown against Barcelona next Sunday.
Direct entry into the Champions League is also within reach, but Valencia shows no signs of faltering. Juan Mata and David Silva scored second-half goals, as Los Che knocked off Almeria 2-0 at the Mestalla, handing the visitors their first defeat in seven league games. Valencia is four points ahead of Mallorca and begins an easy stretch of games before a trip to the Ono Estadi on April 11.
Deportivo felt confident of picking up three points against Valladolid, but Los Blanquiazules suffered their worst defeat of the campaign (0-2) and no longer look like serious contenders for fourth place, despite being only four points back. Miguel Angel Lotina's side slipped to seventh on goal difference after Athletic Bilbao grabbed another point in a 2-2 draw against Getafe.
Elsewhere, Racing Santander snapped a seven-match winless streak with a 3-1 win in Pamplona, while Xerex confirmed its good moment by knocking off Tenerife at home. Los Azulinos have improved considerably since the arrival of manager Nestor Gorosito and still retain hopes of avoiding relegation.
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