FC Barcelona 4–1 Girona Player Ratings: Lewandoski’s Brace Gets the Job Done for Barcelona As They Stay in the Title Hunt

Barcelona demolished Girona 4-1 as a brace from Robert Lewandowski, an own goal from Kerjci, and Ferran Torres got the job done. The visitors were able to score only once thanks to Arnaut Danjuma. It is nine consecutive wins for Barcelona, putting them in the driving seat of the title race. The misery continues for Girona, as their winless streak in La Liga stretches to seven games.

Hansi Flick made four changes today, coming from a 3-0 win over Osasuna three days ago, with Robert Lewandowski regaining his place. As for Girona, it is only two changes – Asprilla and Frances getting into the eleven.

Both teams started with some early chances, which they struggled to convert. Girona gave away the ball just outside of their box at the 24th minute, but were lucky that they did not concede as Lewandowski’s shot was blocked.

While everyone thought Barcelona got ahead when Kounde put the ball in the back of the net after played in by Lopez, the referee called it back, deeming it offside. Finally, in the final minutes of the first half, the Blaugrana broke down the Girona defence with a bit of luck as Yamal’s free-kick went into a group of players, ultimately coming off Krejci’s hand and into the goal. The hosts went into the dressing room with a slender lead in their hands.

Barca continued from where they left off in the first half, playing imperiously. While Girona barely got out of their half, they surprisingly equalised out of thin air thanks to Danjuma, scoring a goal against the run of play. It did not take too long for Barcelona to turn it around as a smart header from Fermin Lopez to pick out Lewandowski, who acrobatically flicked it through Gazzaniga’s legs.

Lewandowski scored his second of the evening when he slipped the ball past Gazzaniga, thanks to some fantastic work from the freshly subbed in Frenkie de Jong. To make things worse for the visitors, Ferran Torres added the fourth goal of the evening as Gerard Martin did a great job to find him out in the box. While there were some attempts for a fifth goal, the game ended 4-1, leaving Barcelona as deserving winners.

Barcelona will prepare for the second leg, away from home, of the semi-final of the Copa del Rey against Atletico Madrid, whilst Girona will invite Deportivo Alaves to their home.

Here are the FC Barcelona vs Girona player ratings.

FC Barcelona Player Ratings

GK- Wojciech Szczesny – 6/10

He had almost nothing to do in the first half as Girona did not trouble him at all, but was caught by a surprise move in the second half.

LB- Gerard Martin – 7/10

The young fullback deputised well for Balde as he was solid defensively and provided width whenever needed when going forward. He did well to pick Ferran Torres to add an assist to his bag.

CB- Inigo Martinez – 6.5/10

A solid display from the veteran, as he did well to cut the attacks off cleverly, reading the game well.

CB- Ronald Araujo – 6.5/10

A composed performance in the backline and even almost got his name on the scoresheet, but failed to do so because of a missed header.

RB- Jules Kounde – 7/10

He almost got his name on the scoresheet with a fantastic run into the box, but unfortunately, it was deemed offside. Outside of that, he looked fantastic going forward.

CM- Eric Garcia – 7/10

He dictated the play well, established dominance in midfield, and almost even scored a goal, but it went right off the post. 

CM- Pedri – 7.5/10

He was the heart of the midfield as usual, stringing passes from the deep, assisting the other attackers well during the buildup play.

CM- Fermin Lopez – 7.5/10

While there were some questionable tackles from him where he could have gotten himself booked, it was an excellent outing for him as he looked lively and even got an assist to his name.

LW- Gavi – 6/10

He was energetic and linked up well, but it was evident that he looked a bit off as he was playing out of his usual position

ST- Robert Lewandowski – 8/10

While he got into some good positions in the box, his finishing looked off as he struggled to convert those chances with ease. But he stepped up in the second half, scoring twice and putting Barcelona in a comfortable position.

RW- Lamine Yamal – 7.5/10

He was a menace as usual, playing with such conviction, getting into great positions, and, albeit lucky, he was pivotal in breaking the deadlock for the hosts.

SUB- Frenkie de Jong – 7/10

He looked lively and shortly after coming off the bench, he got himself an assist for the third goal.

SUB- Ferran Torres – 7/10

A fantastic performance as he scored a goal again coming from the bench.

SUB- Álex Balde – NA

He replaced Eric Garcia to add some energy to the players in the field.

SUB- Pau Cubarsi – NA

He got run out with a few minutes to go as he came on to replace Martinez at the back.

SUB – Pablo Torre – NA

He was sent on as a replacement for Pedri for the final minutes of the game.

Manager- Hansi Flick – 8/10

A good result for him as his side stepped up in the second half after getting the lead very late in the first half. He made some smart substitutions and made sure his star players got enough rest.

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Girona Player Ratings

GK- Paulo Gazzaniga – 7/10

He pulled off one of the best saves to deny a sure-shot goal in the first half. While he ended up conceding thrice, he did a fantastic job of keeping the game competitive.

CB- Daley Blind – 7/10

The veteran defender was key in assisting the opening goal, as his presence of mind played a big role in the goal.

CB- Alejandro Francés – 6/10

While there were some moments of lapse in judgment, his overall performance was solid as he looked calm and composed on and off the ball.

CB- Ladislav Krejci – 4.5/10

A disappointing evening for him as he comically conceded an own goal to throw the clean sheet away.

RWB- Arnau Martinez – 6/10

The fullback did not have full control on his flank as he struggled defensively and offered nothing going forward.

LWB- Miguel Gutiérrez- 6.5/10

The wingback struggled defensively but made efforts to go forward and make things happen

CM- Yangel Herrera – 5.5/10

He was very late in his challenge on Lopez and as a result, Barca were awarded a free-kick in a decent position.

CM- Arthur Melo – 7/10

A workhorse display as he played a crucial role in their first goal, intercepting the ball and starting the events that led to the goal.

LW- Yaser Asprilla – 5.5/10

While he did some good things on the ball in the first half, he was sloppy and ineffective in the second half and got subbed off as a result.

ST- Arnaut Danjuma – 7/10

While he did not get anything to do in the first half, he took his chance extremely well to score the equaliser against the run of play.

RW- Viktor Tsygankov – 5.5/10

He got an early opportunity to score a goal but he hit it too high. Outside of that, he was completely anonymous and was subbed off rightfully.

SUB- Cristian Portu – 6/10

He was the first change of the evening for the visitors, and he was put in to make things happen, but he struggled to do so.

SUB- Jhon Solis – 6/10

 The midfielder was put in during the second half and did a decent job of providing stability to the defense.

SUB- Cristhian Stuani – 5/10

With time running out to turn things around, the manager sent him to replace the struggling Tsygankov up front.

SUB- Gabriel Misehouy – NA

He was sent on as a replacement for the captain, Martinez, for the final minutes of the game.

Manager- Michel – 6/10

It is not a bad result, considering how hard the fixture is. They can pat themselves on their backs for their valiant efforts, especially in the first half. They ran out of ideas in the second half and struggled massively. The winless streak is concerning, and he needs to pull the team together.

The Sportsdunia Player of the Match goes to FC Barcelona’s Fermin Lopez.

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