Messi scored twice, Barca regained the number one position

The Catalan team won 4-1 Levante in round four of Liga to regain the top spot from Real Madrid.

Barca have not dropped any points in the first four rounds of La Liga. Photo: Reuters

Goals: Bartra 50', Neymar 56', Messi 61' penalty, 90' - Victor 66'

Barca won by three goals, but the game was not easy for the defending champions. Levante were lucky to keep a clean sheet in the first half. Barca had to wait until the start of the second half to break the deadlock. After the turning point, Levante really fell apart, allowing Neymar and M10 to score three goals in a row. The visitors only managed a consolation goal thanks to Victor.

Thanks to the victory over Levante, Barca has 12 absolute points after four rounds. Coach Luis Enrique's team also regained the leading position, at the same time pushing Real second with a gap of two points.

In this match, coach Enrique also surprised the audience with the way he arranged the main team. As if wanting to create opportunities for young players, this coach left Luis Suarez and Andres Iniesta on the bench. Thanks to that, the two players Sandro Ramirez and Munir El Haddadi were able to play from the start in the attack.

In fact, Enrique's risk did not change the situation much compared to previous matches. Levante was not strong enough to exploit the lack of experience in Barca's squad, while Messi, Neymar and Rakitic were still strong enough to create a one-sided game.

El Haddadi (left) has a rare opportunity to start.

The only difference from Barca's last Liga game was that their attack was not really focused in the first half. Sandro, who replaced Suarez, missed a golden chance when he headed the ball wide of the goal after Messi's shot was blocked by the away goalkeeper. Messi himself wasted two other chances, giving the impression that his patience was being tested.

While the attack was unlucky, Barca's backline had effective and timely support. In the 50th minute, center-back Bartra rushed forward to receive Messi's cross and then finished close to the goal to open the score. Another defender of the home team, Dani Ales, also played excellently when he sent a cross leading to Neymar's rebound to double the gap in the 56th minute. Alves had just returned after more than two weeks of injury and immediately regained his high form.

Messi continues to surprise with his high penalty miss rate.

Having two goals to relieve the psychological pressure helped Barca play more effectively in the last 30 minutes. Messi had two penalty kicks but only took advantage of one, in the 61st minute. In the remaining situation, M10's kick sent the ball close to the crossbar and out.

A missed penalty may have spurred Messi on to a more explosive performance in the final minutes of the game, which resulted in a stunning goal for the Barca captain in the 90th minute. In this situation, Messi cleverly avoided the offside trap, then dribbled past three defenders and shot with his left foot like a prodigy into the far corner.

According to VNE