Luis Enrique's side struggled for much of the
match against a spirited Sevilla, especially after
Javier Mascherano's red card, but the Argentina
attacker proved the hero once more
COMMENT
There were worrying signs for Barcelona. Javier
Mascherano was sent off, Luis Suarez forced to
depart through injury and Sevilla were putting up a
serious fight. But up stepped the man who has
saved them so many times before. Two magical
moments from Lionel Messi won the Copa del Rey
for the Catalan club.
Mascherano saw red for pulling down Kevin
Gameiro in the 36th minute. The French forward
was through on goal and the Argentine was the last
defender. It was the right decision, despite protests
from Barca fans inside the stadium.
And when Suarez limped off with a hamstring strain
in the second half, it seemed that the deck was
stacked against the Catalans. The Uruguayan, after
all, had been the team's most in-form player in
recent weeks, scoring 14 in Barca's last five Liga
games.
With Suarez sidelined and Neymar not exactly firing
on all cylinders, Barca were lacking inspiration at
that point. But Gerard Pique in defence stopped
almost everything, Andres Iniesta was wonderful in
midfield and, of course, there was Messi.
The Argentine was not having his best game by any
means, but he can always produce the spark to
decide a match at any moment. And that was
exactly what happened as the game went into extra
time.
Sevilla would not have wanted an additional 30
minutes after their Europa League exertions on
Wednesday when they beat Liverpool in Basel. And
with their best player Ever Banega sent off right at
the end in what seems certain to be his last
contribution in a Sevilla shirt before moving to Inter
in the summer, things became even more difficult.
There was no a sense that the momentum had
swung back in Barca's favour. The fans found their
voices, the players pushed, Sevilla sat back - and
up popped Messi. The Argentine lofted a glorious
pass into the path of Jordi Alba in the area in the
first period of extra time and the left-back finished
with a single touch. Unai Emery's side, so solid for
so long, had been completely carved open in an
instant.
That is what Messi can do and with the game
approaching its finale and Sevilla now down to nine
following Daniel Carrico's criminal challenge on the
Argentine, he did it again. This time, the five-time
Ballon d'Or winner waited on the edge of the box
with the ball at his feet as he sensed an opening.
And he picked it perfectly, rolling a beautiful ball
through to Neymar for the Brazilian to make it 2-0.
He hadn't scored but he didn't need to. Those two
moments of magic pulled Barca through a tough
test in a thrilling and tense cup final that sees the
Catalans follow up last season's treble triumph with
a Liga and Copa double this time around.
It has not been an easy end to the season for
Barca. Luis Enrique's men made hard work of La
Liga after losing three consecutive games in April
and also saw their Champions League hopes ended
by Atletico Madrid at the Vicente Calderon.
But back at the same stadium on Sunday, it was a
much happier outcome this time. Having held on to
claim the title in the Primera Division, Barca
conclude the campaign with a domestic double and
four trophies in total, having won the Club World
Cup in December and previously - and curiously -
started the season with an extra-time triumph
against Sevilla in the Uefa Super Cup.
So it all ended where it had begun - with another
trophy against Sevilla. As much as anything,
though, it was Barca's mentality on the night - and
the wonder of Messi - that pulled them through this
test. They made it over the line with a limp, but will
need a deeper and stronger squad next term to
avoid a repeat of recent fatigue.
And if not, there's always Messi. The Argentine
attacker has dug his side out of a hole on so many
occasions before and he did it once again to claim
the Copa on Sunday. His two moments of genius
ensured double delight for Barca and seven
trophies in just two seasons for Luis Enrique is a
measure of the sustained success at Camp Nou.
Such is that success, in fact, that some have
claimed that a double is somewhat underwhelming
for Barca - especially if Real Madrid go on to win
the Champions League next weekend. But that is
merely a mark of what the Blaugrana expect these
days and whatever happens in Milan on May 28,
this has been another super season for the
Catalans.
The Messi era lives on.
