Match Analysis: Barca & United Streaks End

WhoScored’s usual round-up of those significant streaks that have come to an end in the previous round of matches takes place in La Liga and the Premier League. Both matches have had a huge bearing on matters at the top of their respective tables. In Spain, Barcelona tasted defeat at the Nou Camp for the first time this season, as Real Madrid edged nearer to the title, while in England, Manchester United dropped points at home for the first time in eight matches in an eight-goal thriller with Everton, to hand Manchester City a title lifeline.

Ronaldo Keeps the Nou Camp Quiet - Match Report

Saturday evening’s showdown at the Nou Camp was always going to be a pivotal moment in the race for La Liga title. A win for the hosts would have left Pep Guardiola’s side a single point behind Real with four games left to go and, given the visitors had recently stumbled with three draws in the previous seven, form favoured Barca. Jose Mourinho’s men had other ideas, though, handing the current holders their first home defeat of the season to leave themselves almost within touching distance of the title.

It’s little surprise to see Barca so dominant in possession. Guardiola’s side had 72%, with the visitors happy to sit back and hit on the counter. Thiago Alcantara and Sergio Busquets made the most passes for Barca, with 103 and 98 respectively but, as the Player Position map shows, Thiago (11) and Busquets (16) sat deep and were mainly ineffectual with their distribution, making just 2 key passes between them.  Indeed, for all Barca’s control of the game, only 28% was played in Madrid’s final third, with 48% played out in the middle of the field.

For the visitors, Xabi Alonso (34) made the most passes – as many as nine of Barcelona’s starting outfield ten players made more, with only Cristian Tello (24) managing less. In spite of his side’s lack of possession, Mesut Ozil created more goalscoring opportunities than any other player – the German produced 3 key passes and provided an assist, in addition to completing 3 successful dribbles for the visitors.

Mourinho’s tactics required plenty of concentration and defensive resilience from his men and the visitors demonstrated their battle, making 25 tackles to Barca’s 19. Eight Madrid players made 2 or more tackles, compared to only five from Barca – Ozil was again the stand-out performer, making 4 tackles and 7 interceptions from his central role in the attacking midfield three.

Dani Alves was kept busy for the hosts – the right-back made 4 tackles and 2 interceptions, though his tendency to forage forward from right-back was a weakness Mourinho took advantage of. Madrid attacked down their left flank 43% of the time – the Player Position map highlights how far forward Cristiano Ronaldo (7) was when in possession, with Fabio Coentrao (15) happy to sit deep in the left-back position and rarely offer any attacking threat –  he failed to make a single cross, producing 6 long balls from deep instead.

In terms of goal attempts, both sides produced 14 apiece, though Guardiola’s side managed a mere 3 on target in comparison to Madrid’s 6. While Lionel Messi produced 8 successful dribbles, the visitors nullified his threat almost entirely – the Argentine managed a single shot all game, with the effort off target. While Tello had the most shots (4) for the hosts, only 1 of those was on target; indeed it was Alexis Sanchez who was the biggest threat, despite coming on as a late second half sub. In just 21 minutes on the pitch, the Chilean had 2 shots on target – more than any home player – and grabbed his side’s only goal. Barca’s shooting was particularly poor, given 64% of their efforts were inside the Madrid box.

While Mourinho’s tactics worked defensively, they also got the best out of his main attacking asset. Ronaldo had as many as 6 efforts and, although he managed just a couple on target, his 73rd minute winner silenced the Nou Camp and set his side on the way to a crucial victory. The Portuguese star has now notched 42 times this term but none of his previous goals have been as decisive, with Madrid now needing just two wins from their remaining four matches to steal Barcelona’s crown.

United Come Unstuck Against the Toffees - Match Report

With a trip to Manchester City next Monday evening, United knew that victory against Everton on Sunday afternoon would leave them in the driving seat for the title, regardless of what may unfold at the Etihad Stadium.  The league leaders came into the encounter on a seven-match winning run at Old Trafford and, with Everton having been knocked out of the FA Cup Semi-Finals the previous weekend, the hosts were expected to take advantage of a downbeat Toffees side. David Moyes had other ideas, though, with a battling 4-4 draw blowing the race for the Premier League crown wide open.

United just edged possession, with 53% of the play. While Michael Carrick made the most passes (73), Sir Alex Ferguson’s side mainly used their right flank to take the game to their opponents, with 50% of their attacks coming down that side of the pitch. As the Player Position map shows, Rafael (21) pushed high up the pitch from right-back in support of Antonio Valencia (25), working in tandem against Steven Pienaar and Sylvain Distin. Although United used their left wing just 25% of the time, most of their creative play came from this side – Patrice Evra made 4 key passes, while Nani  produced 6 key passes for the hosts and, as a result, picked up 2 assists.

For Everton, Pienaar and Marouane Fellaini excelled – both created 5 goalscoring opportunities apiece, with the latter picking up an assist. Tony Hibbert made 2 key passes from right-back and provided a pair of assists for the visitors.

In terms of tackles, Everton were slightly superior, making 23 to the home side’s 20. Phil Neville – playing in central midfield against his former employers – made 5 tackles, more than any away player. Distin also played his part. Standing in at left-back for the injured Leighton Baines, the Frenchman made 3 tackles and 4 interceptions, keeping Valencia quiet on the right. Distin also won 5 aerial duels, while Fellaini won 7 - the most of any player on the pitch.

Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick won 7 tackles between them in the United central midfield, with the former also chipping in with 3 interceptions. Jonny Evans was another standout defensive performer for United – the centre-half made 2 tackles, 3 interceptions and 10 clearances, though an error from the Irishman led to a goal for the visitors.

The home side had the most goal attempts, with 24 to Everton’s 17 but both sides managed just 7 shots on target apiece. The United front two, Wayne Rooney and Danny Welbeck, had 5 efforts each. Rooney scored twice from 3 on target, while Welbeck netted with his only shot on target. Welbeck also picked up a pair of assists and, with 3 key passes also to his name, earned the WhoScored man of the match award, with a rating of 9.59. Nani also stood out here, too; the Portuguese winger had 4 efforts and scored once.

Nikica Jelavic had the most attempts of any player, however. The January signing had 6 shots over the 90 minutes and, with 3 on target, hit the net twice to take his tally to 6 goals from six starts since joining from Glasgow Rangers. While Leon Osman managed 5 efforts from the right flank, only one of those were on target. It was left to Fellaini and Pienaar to grab the other goals, with the latter’s 85th minute equaliser stunning Old Trafford and sealing a remarkable match that added an unexpected twist to the race for the Premier League title.

All of a sudden, Manchester City are in with a shout and, with a win next Monday enough for Roberto Mancini’s side to return to the top of the table, all eyes turn to the Etihad in what could potentially prove to be a winner-takes-all showdown.