Luis Suarez bags a brace as Barcelona beat Leganes - 7M sport

Luis Suarez bags a brace as Barcelona beat Leganes



Posted Sunday, November 19, 2017 by PA

Luis Suarez scored a brace as Barcelona recorded a 3-0 victory against Leganes to extend their lead at the summit of LaLiga.

Suarez fired home the opener after 28 minutes before netting his second on the hour mark.

Substitute Paulinho completed the victory - Barcelona's 11th from their opening 12 matches - in stoppage time to move Ernesto Valverde's team seven points ahead of second-placed Valencia, who face Espanyol on Sunday.

The Catalans started the match with the same line-up that dispatched Sevilla before the international break with Suarez and Lionel Messi continuing to lead the line.

The home side, meanwhile, made three changes following their 3-0 defeat against Valencia with Watford's on-loan forward Nordin Amrabat taking the place of Claudio Beauvue.

Barcelona have been in rampant form this season but they were forced to work for their victory on Saturday, and it was not until the game approached the half-hour mark that they broke the deadlock.

Paco Alcacer's cross from the right was parried by Leganes goalkeeper Ivan Cuellar, but Suarez was on hand to pounce on the loose ball and fire the visiting side ahead.

Moments later, Barcelona had Marc-Andre ter Stegen to thank for keeping them ahead after he saved well from Alexander Szymanowski.

Indeed Valverde's side ended the opening period struggling to create chances, and it was the hosts who came out after the interval on the front foot with Amrabat causing problems.

With 60 minutes gone, however, Suarez all-but secured the three points for Barcelona.

Messi's chip into the box was met by Alcacer, and his half-volley was well saved by Cuellar, but the ball fell to Suarez whose deflected strike flew past the Leganes stopper and into the back of the net.

Leganes responded as Amrabat turned past Gerard Pique only to find Ter Stegen storming off his line to smother his shot.

And it was Paulinho who put the icing on the cake for the LaLiga leaders when he toe-poked Messi's through-ball past Cuellar in the closing moments.

The only sour note for Barcelona - who travel to Juventus in the Champions League on Wednesday - was a first-half booking for Pique which means he will now miss their league trip to Valencia next weekend.

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