Suarez scores twice, Barca firmly steps forward with a big win

The Uruguayan striker continued his excellent form as he helped Barca win four-star against Almeria in round 30 of Liga.

Suarez - Messi pair is getting more and more compatible. Photo: Reuters

Result: Barca 4-0 Almeria

Goal:Messi 33', Suarez 55', 90', Bartra 75'

Luis Suarez scored a left-footed wonder in the 55th minute before sealing a 4-0 win for Barca with a simple tap-in from Pedro. Lionel Messi also had a successful match, opening the scoring with a curling shot. The other goal was scored by Marc Bartra, the centre-back celebrating by tucking the ball into his shirt as if to signal the arrival of his first child.

The win over Almeria puts Barca four points clear of Real Madrid at the top of the table, and is a successful start to next week's Champions League quarter-final first leg against PSG.

Almeria were second from bottom but still made Barca work hard to score in the first half. Their crowded defence limited a series of attacks from the home team in the first 25 minutes, including a header from Luis Suarez and a shot from inside the box from Messi. Almeria even came close to scoring first with Wellington Silva's cross, but Pedro's touch narrowly deflected the ball wide of the post to save Barca.

In a somewhat deadlocked match, Barca finally had to rely on Messi's excellent qualities to open the scoring. In the 33rd minute, M10 dribbled the ball from the left wing past a defender and suddenly launched a curling shot into the far corner. The ball's trajectory drew a spectacular banana curve that the Almeria defenders covered and blocked with all their might but still could not avoid conceding a goal.

If Messi was the standout in the first half, Suarez was superior to everyone after the break. The striker participated in many threats to Almeria's goal and soon scored a masterpiece with a curling shot in the 55th minute. Goalkeeper Cuesta got a hand to the ball in this situation but could not save it due to the force of the shot.

Xavi is still playing effectively at the age of 35.

One of the best players in this match was veteran Xavi. In a rare start this season, the Barca captain did an excellent job of distributing the ball and creating opportunities. In the 75th minute, Xavi himself took a corner kick for Bartra to head in simply in the box, making it 3-0.

The other goal of the match came from a team spirit situation by Pedro in the 90th minute. From a shooting angle where he could have scored himself, the player wearing the Barca number 7 shirt passed to the right for Suarez to finish into the empty net to seal the 4-0 victory. This move once again affirmed Pedro's value to Barca when there were rumors that he would leave in the summer transfer window.

Barca continues to maintain a 4-point gap over Real

According to VNE