First Division - Day 3

Barcelona 1 - Alavés 2

Barcelona: Cillessen; Aleix Vidal, Mascherano, Mathieu, Digne; Rakitic, Busquets, Denis Suárez (Messi 60’); Arda Turan (Iniesta 64‘), Paco Alcácer (Luis Suárez 66‘), Neymar. 4-3-3.
Alavés: Pacheco; Kiko Femenía (Vigaray 74‘), Alexis, Laguardia, Raúl García, Theo Hernández; Edgar Méndez (Espinoza 70‘), Marcos Llorente, Dani Torres, Ibai Gómez (Camarasa 79‘); Deyverson. 5-4-1.

Goals:
0-1. 39. Deyverson. Got on the end of Femenía cross to turn shot past Cillessen.
1-1. 47. Mathieu. Steered header down past Pacheco from long Neymar corner.
1-2. 64. Ibai Gómez. Battled past Aleix Vidal and struck angled shot across keeper.

Yellow cards: Mascherano 55’, Raúl García 72’.

The surprise of the weekend was without doubt Barcelona’s 1-2 defeat against Alavés in the Nou Camp on Saturday. With a busy programme coming up, several players only just returning from international commitments, and Ter Stegen injured, Luis Enrique made no less than seven changes to his starting line up. Other than a couple of wayward efforts by Aleix Vidal though they hardly approached the visiting goal, and Cillessen had to save from Ibai Gómez before Deyverson got on the end of a Kiko Femenía centre to slide the ball past the Dutch keeper. Neymar and Rakitic went inches wide as Barça rallied before the break, and just two minutes after the restart Mathieu got on the end of Neymar’s corner to head the equalizer. The French defender missed the easiest of chances to score a second just minutes later, and Neymar also shot over the top. But some twenty minutes in to the second half Ibai Gómez battled past Vidal to restore the lead, and even with Iniesta, Messi and Luis Suárez on the park, the Catalans were unable to find a way past a well ordered defence.