BARCELONA: Lionel Messi came off the bench to inspire Barcelona to a 3-1 win over a dogged Leganes side on Sunday, creating one goal and scoring another to keep the Catalans five points clear at the top of La Liga. Messi, left out of the starting line-up for only the second time this season when fit, was called on in the 64th minute with the game poised at 1-1 after Leganes forward Martin Braithwaite had cancelled out Ousmane Dembele’s first-half opener with a 57th-minute strike. “We played well, Leganes could do nothing in attack but we were just lacking precision in the final pass. With Messi resting on the bench in the first half, Dembele was the team’s focal point in attack, frequently finding holes in the Leganes defence with thrilling bursts of pace and wild dribbles. Dembele narrowly fired wide, so Barca coach Ernesto Valverde turned to Messi to see Leganes off, and the club’s all-time top scorer duly delivered.

Source: Pakistan Today January 20, 2019 22:41 UTC