Fweet—!
The Camp Nou erupted at the first whistle of the Copa del Rey quarter-final. Ninety thousand people who had been watching Barcelona dismantle Stamford Bridge four days earlier were now watching the same squad turn its attention to the domestic cup.
Villarreal, the Yellow Submarine, had not come to defend. Marcelino had decided on a high press, his lines compacted, looking to drag Barcelona into a midfield war rather than let them circulate. It was a brave decision and, for about ten minutes, a functional one.
Marc Bartra, rotating in at right back, found himself in a physical contest with Giovani dos Santos on the left flank. Dos Santos had pace and directness and twice in the opening minutes got to the byline before Bartra could cover. The Camp Nou made the specific noise it makes when a rotated player is being tested.
Busquets resolved the second attempt, a clean sliding tackle that swept the ball out before the cross came. He was upright and playing it immediately, feeding Sergi Roberto who found Iniesta. The carousel locked in.
Iniesta to Neymar wide left. Neymar step-over, step-over, cut inside, a low driven shot toward the near post that Asenjo touched onto the woodwork. The ball fell to Messi at close range. Messi hit it first time.
CLANG.
The crossbar shuddered. The Camp Nou groaned.
"Messi off the woodwork," Santiago said. "But the pattern is clear. Villarreal's high press is creating space behind them and Barcelona are finding it every time they play through."
The first goal arrived in the 18th minute. Messi peeled off his marker, Mario Gaspar, near the edge of the final third. Lorenzo received a diagonal pass and held Bruno Soriano off with his shoulder, the strength of the hold allowing Messi to continue his run before flicking the ball perfectly back into the space Messi was entering. One touch from Messi. Low finish past the advancing Asenjo.
1-0.
On the touchline, Marcelino turned to his assistant. "The triple-team on Lorenzo is pulling everyone too high. Compress the centre, stop giving Messi that corridor."
"If we compress, Neymar has space on the left."
Marcelino looked at the pitch. "I know. Pick your poison."
In the 32nd minute, Sergi Roberto and Iniesta won the second ball from a Paulista miscontrol in midfield. Iniesta released Neymar down the left. Neymar cut inside to the top of the box and fed Lorenzo.
Lorenzo rolled it back to Messi and spun past his marker on the turn, the same movement he had used at the Anoeta, the same 180-degree pivot off the planted foot. Íñiguez bit on the dummy and lost him. Lorenzo emerged in space behind the line.
Messi's chip was precise. Lorenzo met it with his left foot, first time, a volley hit clean through the centre of the ball, low and hard, past Asenjo's ear into the corner.
2-0.
"THE COMBINATION IS ABSOLUTE!" Santiago called. "Messi sets up Lorenzo, Lorenzo sets up Messi, they're distributing goals between themselves like gifts."
Before the interval, Neymar completed the set. A long Busquets ball found Lorenzo in the air above Pantić, the header knocked down cleanly, a pivot pass falling straight to Neymar's run on the left. Neymar drove inside and curled the finish into the far corner.
3-0. All three on the scoresheet before halftime.
In the dressing room, Martino rested Puyol for the second half, his knee had done its work.
"Good first forty-five," Martino said. "Three-nil. Secure it cleanly. We have the second leg of the Copa against Villarreal in two weeks and the Chelsea second leg at the Camp Nou after that." He looked at the room. "Start preparing your heads for that fixture. Tonight we finish the job, and then we focus on what comes next."
The second half was professional and calm. Barcelona retained possession with the ease of a team that has won the argument and is now just managing the clock. Villarreal chased. The spaces continued to open.
In the 76th minute, Piqué rose highest from a corner - a clean, powerful header from a Sergi Roberto delivery and made it 4-0.
Final: Barcelona 4–0 Villarreal. Copa del Rey QF L1 - one foot in the semis.
Two days later, Real Betis visited the Camp Nou for La Liga. Martino rotated heavily - Xavi, Iniesta, Alves, Puyol all rested. Lorenzo started regardless.
Barcelona were five up before the hour. Lorenzo scored twice, Messi twice, Neymar one. The passing was crisp and the pressing was high and the match was functionally over by the time the Betis manager made his first substitution.
Final: Barcelona 5–0 Real Betis. La Liga MD13.
After thirteen league rounds, the table:
Club - W - D - L - Pts
FC Barcelona -13 - 0 - 0 - 39
Real Madrid 10 - 2 - 1 - 32
Atlético Madrid 9 - 2 - 2 - 29
Barcelona had secured the mid-season title, the informal winter championship that Spanish football tracked as a leading indicator with two rounds still to play before the January break. It was the earliest the title had been clinched in La Liga's winter calculation in the modern era.
On Marca's website, the mid-season MVP poll had closed. The margin was not close. Lorenzo led over Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo combined by a ratio that had not been seen before. The Marca editor-in-chief gave a brief statement to the press: "He has been playing professional football for four months. We ran the poll anyway because the rules require it. We all knew the result before it opened."
In training the following morning, Martino distributed a tactical folder on Chelsea. Second leg preparation. Camp Nou. The first leg lead was 3-1. The tie was in Barcelona's hands.
The winter break was three days away.
[Status: Winter title secured.]
[System Note: 25 consecutive wins.]
Plz Drop Some Power Stones.
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