Pages

Subscribe:

Subscribe Via Email (Do Not Edit Here!)

Thursday 18 September 2014

Barcelona 1-0 APOEL: Pique heads hosts to unconvincing victory

The centre-back proved to be the difference as Luis Enrique's first European game in charge of the Catalan club ended with a win
Gerard Pique headed in the only goal of the game as Barcelona opened their Champions League campaign with a low-key 1-0 victory over APOEL on Wednesday.



Pique nodded home in the 28th minute to help Barca - and their new head coach Luis Enrique - kick off their Group F campaign with maximum points, although the determined Cypriot side offered a sterner test than many had predicted.
The Spanish giants' triumph ultimately continued a 100 per cent start to the tenure of Enrique, who took the reins following Gerardo Martino's ill-fated campaign at the helm in 2013-14.
Having managed to once again align a defensive nous with the kind of possessional dominance that was the hallmark of the Pep Guardiola years, Barcelona are beginning to look imposing.
Unsurprisingly, they had too much for APOEL, with Barca's excellent defence - who have yet to concede this term - yielding only a single shot on target as Luis Enrique's men followed up La Liga wins over Elche, Villarreal and Athletic Bilbao.
Any thoughts that the new coach might take APOEL lightly were soon put to rest as Lionel Messi, Neymar and Munir El Haddadi started together up front.
Messi was on hand immediately to illustrate his threat, forcing goalkeeper Urko Pardo into a solid save with a dipping free kick.
That set the early tone as Barcelona controlled possession, with Xavi - who has become more of a bit-part player under Enrique - at the centre of their good work.
Their impressive build-up play did not glean too many chances, although Neymar did curl a shot just wide midway through the opening period.
However, the deadlock was finally broken in the 28th minute, Pique finding space in the area to nod Messi's pin-point free-kick into the corner.
There was little sign of an APOEL response, with Barca quickly settling back into a methodical passing rhythm.

0 comments:

Post a Comment