The January signing made the difference with his first Liga goal amid a poor overall performance from the Blaugrana
Move over Robert Lewandowski, Barcelona have a new star striker in their ranks! Vitor Roque bagged his first goal in red and blue, the only one of the night, as the Blaugrana beat mid-table Osasuna in the first match since Xavi announced his pending resignation. Brazilian teenager Vitor scored within two minutes of entering the fray in the second half, finding the net with an impressive header to hand Barca a tepid 1-0 win.
The Blaugrana enjoyed control of the possession in the first half, but had admittedly little to show for it. They put just one effort on target in the opening 45 minutes, Jules Kounde’s narrow miss from a corner standing as the closest they came to scoring.
A substitute changed things, though, as Vitor scored shortly after entering the fold. His finish was a clever one, the teenager meeting Joao Cancelo’s trivela pass with a bullet header. Xavi’s side thought they had a second with 10 minutes remaining, as Vitor and Lewandowski linked up, but the Polish striker was ruled offside after curling a fine shot into the far corner.
This wasn’t comfortable at any point, as Barca’s 1-0 lead looked precarious for the last 30 minutes. Still, points matter for a team that is now trying to stay afloat in the Champions League race. Xavi, now counting down the days, can’t have any gripes about the result.
GOAL rates Barcelona’s players from the Olympic Stadium…
Goalkeeper & Defence
Inaki Pena (6/10):
Had a couple of saves to make, and made them well. Will take the rare clean sheet.
Jules Kounde (6/10):
Missed a good chance in the first half. Largely untroubled in a defensive sense.
Ronald Araujo (7/10):
Entangled in a physical battle all evening, one that he mostly won. Was limping by full-time, which will surely be of concern.
Pau Cubarsi (6/10):
A solid showing at the back, even if he had reasonably little to do. In an ideal world, the teenager wouldn’t have to play quite yet.
Joao Cancelo (7/10):
A bit loose in possession, but did his defensive work well, and grabbed an assist.
Midfield
Frenkie de Jong (7/10):
Did all of the graceful stuff at the base of midfield. Had the best pass completion percentage on the pitch. Impressive, as usual.
Pedri (6/10):
Covered ground, won his tackles, but didn’t quite find the final pass. Graceful without being impactful.
Ilkay Gundogan (7/10):
Played in a more advanced role for long periods, and found some useful pockets of space against a low block.
Attack
Lamine Yamal (7/10):
Barca’s most obvious and consistent outlet. Curled in some nice crosses and beat his man with regularity. A more mobile striker might have reached one or two of his deliveries.
Robert Lewandowski (5/10):
Languid up front. Missed a few of his fellow attackers’ dangerous crosses. Better after he dropped deeper and allowed Vitor to run in behind.
Ferran Torres (N/A):
Replaced after less than five minutes with an injury. Limped off in tears. A worrying one.
Subs & Manager
Fermin Lopez (5/10):
Replaced Torres, and made very little impact after his introduction. He was misused in an advanced role, and removed for Vitor after an hour.
Vitor Roque (8/10):
An immensely impactful introduction. Scored shortly after coming on, and was full of energy.
Oriol Romeu (N/A):
Brought on for defensive muscle, which he didn’t really provide.
Xavi (5/10):
It was the same old Barca for a manager now running on borrowed time. His team had the ball a lot, but didn’t do loads with it. This time, a bright teenage talent saved them.
