Barca turn up heat on Atletico in title race
MADRID: Lionel Messi scored twice on Sunday as Barcelona trounced Real Sociedad 6-1 to keep the pressure on Atletico Madrid, who squeezed past Alaves thanks to a late penalty save from Jan Oblak.
Oblak’s 86th-minute heroics ensured Luis Suarez’s 500th career goal was enough for a 1-0 victory at the Wanda Metropolitano, meaning the gap at the top of La Liga remains at four points, with 10 games left to play.
But the contrast between Atletico’s nervy win against 19th-placed Alaves and Barca’s demolition of a Real Sociedad side with hopes of qualifying for Europe spoke volumes about where the momentum lies in the Spanish title race.
Atletico will hope Oblak’s save can prove to be a turning point after a challenging few weeks, while the international break might offer Diego Simeone’s side a chance to reset and refresh ahead of the run-in.
“There are games where you suffer but that’s what makes football beautiful,” said Oblak.
Simeone said: “Like all great teams, there is always one that scores a lot of goals and one that makes a lot of saves. They are both decisive players who make the team stronger.”
Barcelona have hit their stride, their six goals against Real Sociedad no less than they deserved for a scintillating attacking display, and perhaps their best since Ronald Koeman took charge.
“The team has improved a lot recently,” said Koeman.
“We’ve gone a lot of games without losing in the league, which was the only way to get back in the fight for the title.”
Messi scored his 11th and 12 goals in his last 10 games and made it 16 in 12 this year. The 33-year-old has also now passed Xavi Hernandez’s record of 767 Barcelona appearances, which he had equalled against Huesca on Monday.
For Barcelona, it is a ninth consecutive away win in the league, with a club record 10th within their grasp if they beat Real Madrid in the Clasico on April 10.
Messi stays ahead of Suarez in the La Liga scoring charts, despite the Uruguayan’s excellent finish nine minutes into the second half against Alaves.