Three talking points from Barcelona 1-1 Real Betis | OneFootball

Barcelona could not pick a win over Real Betis for the second time this season despite having the home advantage.

Hansi Flick rotated his side slightly on the night but largely conserved the core, given how important the game was. Real Madrid losing earlier in the day made it more important for the team to have a chance to go six points clear.

Barcelona, however, could only manage a draw as Gavi’s opener was cancelled out by a strike from Natan and the team then played out a second half with no goals.

With the UEFA Champions League returning midweek, Flick would have expected a better result to keep the steam and momentum on his side.

Yet, the result could have been worse for Barcelona and the Catalans will take the one point they earned with little regret.

Barça Universal brings you three talking points from Barcelona 1-1 Real Betis.

An understandable result

Fatigue could take over. (Photo by Judit Cartiel/Getty Images)

Given the schedule Barcelona have had to deal with, it was inevitable that fatigue would catch up with them at some point.

Understandably, it looked like exhaustion had caught up with the team, and many players across the park looked off-colour.

While Barcelona’s performance was not bad in any capacity, no player took it upon himself to come up clutch and the lazy display saw the team put many chances to waste.

Lamine Yamal had a rare off night and struggled to create much of use. Raphinha and Ferran Torres also looked like shadows of themselves.

While the defence was largely good, they, too, made a trivial error in man-marking, which gave Los Verdiblancos their equaliser early in the game.

Considering that the team has virtually played a game every 72 hours, the draw is not as bad a result as it would be otherwise. What is key, however, is that the team come back rejuvenated for the next game after the rare-off night.

Gavi returns to his best

Gavi scored a goal against Real Betis. (Photo by Judit Cartiel/Getty Images)

While Barcelona looked to struggle across the field, one player who stepped up and looked better than he had before was Gavi.

The La Masia star started the game in what came as a massive relief to fans after his injury scare earlier in the week.

Through the 90 minutes, he looked to be the best touch he has been since recovering from his ACL injury, which comes as a promising development for Flick.

Gavi opened the scoring for Barcelona in just the seventh minute with a precise finish and gave the team the lead. It was, notably, the only goal they scored on the night.

Further, the Golden Boy winner stepped up with 92% passing accuracy and two key passes and completed 100% of his long balls.

He won a staggering eight duels on the night and also pitched in defensively and in the team’s press when off the ball.

Gavi’s return to form, thus, could not have come at a better time, and he will see many more minutes in the coming weeks given Marc Casado’s injury and Dani Olmo’s poor fitness record.

Last night, he proved his value as an attacking midfielder and made a strong case to be a regular starter.

The net positive

Barcelona dropped points against Real Betis. (Photo by Judit Cartiel/Getty Images)

Dropping points at this stage of the season is something Barcelona simply cannot afford, and the result last night was thus a poor one for the Catalans.

In the grander scheme of things, however, it turns out that they will not pay the price for their slip-up as Real Madrid also failed to get a result against Valencia.

Had Los Blancos won their game, they would be just one point off Barcelona and with a serious chance of pulling a comeback in La Liga.

Given that they lost to Valencia at the Santiago Bernabeu, however, Barcelona ended up moving an extra point clear of Real Madrid despite the draw.

The game may be a missed opportunity to go six points clear, but it is luckily still not as bad as it could have been for Barcelona.

Even losing El Clasico will not be enough to stop Barcelona from winning La Liga, should they win the remaining games they have. The net result of the matchday is a huge positive.