Celta Vigo 0-3 Barcelona: Barca continue winning run despite Lenglet’s red card

Ansu Fati-Barcelona

The French defender was sent off before the half-time whistle.

Barcelona have continued their winning run with a comfortable victory against Celta Vigo at Baleidos.

Ansu Fati, who produced a match-winning performance against Villarreal, scored the opening goal in the 11th minute of the game. The Spaniard was able to find the net with a brilliant first touch, benefitting from Philippe Coutinho’s assist.

The visitor’s near-perfect performance was marred by Clement Lenglet’s red card as the Frenchman got sent off after the accumulation of two yellow cards.

Despite being a man down, Barca was intense in the opening minutes of the second half, which saw Lionel Messi’s strike rolled to the nets after a big deflection from Celta defender Olaza.

Barca were forced to sit back in the final quarter as the hosts sustained a long spell of possession. Their efforts nearly paid off as Nolito’s shot was saved by Neto before Baeza hit the crossbar on the rebound.

Lionel Messi, playing as a lone striker, often found himself in the dangerous positions to punish the home side in the counter-attacks.

The Argentine had a shot denied in injury time by goalkeeper Ivan Villar before Sergi Roberto made full use of the second attempt to score the final goal of the game.

Ronald Koeman’s second win also marked Barca’s first at Baleidos since 2015, ending the long-running curse.

Ronald Araujo, who came as a replacement for Antoine Griezmann in the second half, is expected to start against Sevilla following the suspension of Lenglet.