Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Rakitic shot wins it
FC Barcelona survives own goal in La Liga-Serie A Cup game
MIAMI GARDENS — Heading into Wednesday’s match in Miami against SSC Napoli, FC Barcelona knew that it was at a potential disadvantage. The club would be without superstar Lionel Messi, who had not traveled with his team to the United States for their La Liga-Serie A Cup matchup.
But it ended up not mattering, as Barcelona overcame an own goal in the first half to win 2-1 at Hard Rock Stadium.
Despite the match being held at a neutral site, it was clear who the crowd was rooting for, as the stands were packed with maroon and blue jerseys and cheers erupted for practically any Barcelona player or chance.
Barcelona’s win was the first part of the La Liga-Serie A Cup, which is in its inaugural year. The cup matches up teams from the respective leagues in a pair of games. The second match between these clubs is set for Saturday at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor.
Despite much of the early portion of the game being played in front of its goal, Napoli almost took an early lead in the 19th minute, when a pass slipped the ball between two defenders, leaving Lorenzo Insigne alone in front of Neto. But he was unable to get his quick shot past the goalkeeper, keeping the game tied 0-0.
The 31st minute saw another great opportunity for Napoli, when a cross placed the ball right in front of the goal, giving Dries Mertens a chance to finish. But his shot rolled just to the left of the goal to keep the score even.
Despite Napoli’s early chances, it was Barcelona who finally got on the board first. In the 38th minute, Sergio Busquets
fired a rocket from outside the box that was just out of Alex Meret’s reach, putting his club up 1-0 with a few minutes to go before halftime.
But that lead was very shortlived thanks to a crucial mistake. Just a few minutes later, Napoli launched the ball into an almostempty box, where Barcelona’s Samuel Umtiti accidentally committed an own goal to even the score.
Napoli dominated for much of the rest of the first half, holding possession with ease and routinely getting the ball near Barcelona’s goal. But they were held off, and the clubs went into halftime tied 1-1.
After halftime, both teams remained aggressive and generated some close chances. Barcelona had a great opportunity to score in the 67th minute, when it earned a free kick just outside the box. But the club couldn’t take advantage as the shot sailed harmlessly over the crossbar.
Both teams continued to trade chances after that, with each club coming within inches of goals just a couple minutes apart. But despite the many opportunities, neither squad was able to take the lead.
Finally, in the 79th minute, Barcelona broke through. Ivan Rakitic rocketed the ball from just inside the box, and it narrowly found the back of the net to put Barcelona up 2-1 with just 10 minutes to go.
Napoli was unable to respond in the game’s closing minutes and Barcelona went on to win 2-1.