Messi makes amends, Barca wins second match in La Liga

After missing a penalty, M10 scored twice to give Alaves a 2-0 win.

Goals: Messi 55', 66'

Messi surprised everyone when he failed to take a penalty in the 39th minute. The star wearing the number 10 shirt just took a run from a very close distance and fired a low shot that goalkeeper Pacheco easily pushed away.

Alaves only prevented Messi from scoring from the penalty spot, but could not keep a clean sheet. Photo: Reuters

After his mistake on the 11m mark, Messi made up for his mistake with a double. The opening goal came from a powerful shot that deflected off defender Ely's foot and changed direction, leaving Pacheco unable to save for Alaves. Not long after, Messi received a header from Paco Alcacer to volley home the 2-0 victory.

Messi's double is of great value to Barca as the attack is struggling to find a new direction. With Neymar gone and Luis Suarez yet to recover from injury, M10 alone appears to be alone up front. Barca no longer has the good coordination between the MSN trio, and at the same time cannot create many dangerous situations.dangerous for Alaves goal.

The penalty kick in the 39th minute was the clearest chance Barca had in the first half. It came from Ely pulling down Pique in the Alaves penalty area, after both players jumped to receive a free kick that Messi sent across the box.

Alaves almost caused a big surprise for Barca in the first half.

While Barca had a lot of possession without creating enough chances, Alaves were dangerous on the counter-attack. If it weren't for goalkeeper Ter Stegen's excellent reflexes, Barca could have conceded a goal after a shot from a tight angle..

Alaves also missed another good chance early in the second half. The two home players got past the Barca defenders but crossed the ball to each other with poor accuracy.

Not only did the away team escape defeat with luck, they also had some good luck in attack. Messi's first goal was the result of a shot that deflected off a defender's foot and changed direction, while the second goal came from a careless clearance by Alaves.

Had the crossbar not blocked another shot, Messi could have had a hat-trick. The Argentine also missed another chance when his 16-yard shot was saved by a defender.

Sergi Roberto (left) continues to show his versatility when playing well in the role of right-back.

Barca waited until the 88th minute to bring on new signing Paulinho. This was also the first match that the 29-year-old Brazilian midfielder played for his new team.

Alaves also attracted attention when they let Enzo Zidane enter the field from the 77th minute. The eldest son of Real coach Zinedine Zidane recently joined Alaves on loan.

The win over Alaves was Barca's second consecutive 2-0 win. Last weekend, Messi and his teammates did the same when they hosted Betis.

With six absolute points after two rounds, Barca is ranked second in La Liga. Sociedad also has six points, a goal difference of +4 and only has more goals than Barca. In the second round, Real plays the latest when they host Valencia on the evening of August 28.

According to VNE