SPORT / FOOTBALL
Super-sub Messi leads Barcelona in comeback victory against Betis
Lionel Messi scored his fastest league goal as a substitute as his strike 136 seconds after coming on inspired Barcelona to a 3-2 victory over Real Betis on Sunday.
Messi was among several key players rested, with Ronald Koeman seemingly prioritizing Wednesday's Copa del Rey semifinal against Sevilla ahead of Barca's fading title challenge in La Liga.
Defeat would have called that decision into question but Messi drove in an equalizer less than three minutes after coming on in the second half and then helped set up Francisco Trincao to score a late winner, the 21-year-old's first goal for Barcelona.
Betis will wonder how they managed not to take at least a point from a wild contest but Barcelona sustain their momentum, this being their sixth league victory in a row.
They were hit early by the injury to Ronald Araujo, whose ankle caved under the weight of an awkward fall. Frenkie de Jong came in at center-back and his partner Clement Lenglet should have given Barca the lead but headed wide from five yards out.
Betis made them pay with a brilliant opening goal on the break. Ousmane Dembele lost the ball upfield and Betis poured forward, the ball shifted right to Emerson who motored round Jordi Alba and squared for Borja Iglesias to slam home.
Juanmi might have made it two but was denied by Marc-Andre ter Stegen before Messi came on for Miralem Pjanic in the 57th minute and equalized in the 59th. Dembele returned a pass to Messi on the edge of the area and he drove a sizzling shot inside the post.
Nine minutes later, Barca were in front, Alba's cross mishit by Antoine Griezmann, only for the ball to cannon in anyway off the legs of Victor Ruiz.
Betis were not finished yet and neither was Ruiz, the defender making amends by heading in Nabil Fekir's crossed free-kick with 15 minutes left.
Yet Barcelona had one more trick up their sleeve as Messi weaved in from the left and his chipped pass was headed into the path of the 21-year-old Trincao, whose thundering shot flew in off the crossbar.
Messi was among several key players rested, with Ronald Koeman seemingly prioritizing Wednesday's Copa del Rey semifinal against Sevilla ahead of Barca's fading title challenge in La Liga.
Defeat would have called that decision into question but Messi drove in an equalizer less than three minutes after coming on in the second half and then helped set up Francisco Trincao to score a late winner, the 21-year-old's first goal for Barcelona.
Betis will wonder how they managed not to take at least a point from a wild contest but Barcelona sustain their momentum, this being their sixth league victory in a row.
They were hit early by the injury to Ronald Araujo, whose ankle caved under the weight of an awkward fall. Frenkie de Jong came in at center-back and his partner Clement Lenglet should have given Barca the lead but headed wide from five yards out.
Betis made them pay with a brilliant opening goal on the break. Ousmane Dembele lost the ball upfield and Betis poured forward, the ball shifted right to Emerson who motored round Jordi Alba and squared for Borja Iglesias to slam home.
Juanmi might have made it two but was denied by Marc-Andre ter Stegen before Messi came on for Miralem Pjanic in the 57th minute and equalized in the 59th. Dembele returned a pass to Messi on the edge of the area and he drove a sizzling shot inside the post.
Nine minutes later, Barca were in front, Alba's cross mishit by Antoine Griezmann, only for the ball to cannon in anyway off the legs of Victor Ruiz.
Betis were not finished yet and neither was Ruiz, the defender making amends by heading in Nabil Fekir's crossed free-kick with 15 minutes left.
Yet Barcelona had one more trick up their sleeve as Messi weaved in from the left and his chipped pass was headed into the path of the 21-year-old Trincao, whose thundering shot flew in off the crossbar.
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