A match for football purists. The Barca vs Villareal match unveiled end to end football between two clubs committed to attack. Fabulous, preternatural passing complete with delectable finishes. An excellent counterpoint to the EPL's physicality. Sit back and savour with a bottle of nice rioja.
Xavi lays off to Iniesta who splits the defense sending Villa racing forward for Barca's first strike. A second goal by Pedro was erroneously disallowed for offside but not before catching a glimpse of Messi's selfless nature. That is why he is a future legend - a player committed to the team. He understands the switching on and off of the symbiotic and individualistic aspects of the game so perfectly.
At the other end, Villareal were having none of it as Nilmar's superlative strike showed. The Brazilian took on the Barca defense with some lovely footwork scoring with an acutely angled shot.
La Liga may be for all practical purposes a two horse race but the Yellow Submarines have shown no inclination to let us on that secret. Their squad is bolstered by the fleet footed Giuseppe Rossi in the slot and its midfield excellence. The ever smiling Santi Cazorla, excellent down the flanks; Borja Valero on loan from West Brom adding to the creative dimension; and Bruno sitting deeper in the midfield. With Spain regulars Carlos Marchena and Joan Capdevila, their defense is no pushover.
This was going to be no easy match for Barca unless they found another lever. Which is why they are Barca and it all ended in an unreal Messi goal. Xavi took a hurried free kick with Villareal's players milling around and before they had collected their thoughts the ball was in the back of the net - Messi and Pedro pinging each other in rapid succession before the Argentinian delicately chipped over Diego Lopez with his right foot! And in the dying minutes, Messi added another as he flicked on a deflection off Capdevila past Lopez - he was offside when Pedro drove in his shot but in a way it was justice done for the disallowed goal.
With Real Madrid sitting on top of the table, this is the type of momentum that Barca need coming into the Clasico in two weeks time.
It is always a great match when you watch a rivalry team match up with each other.