Robert Lewandowski got Barcelona out of jail as Alaves threatened to pile on further misery for the reigning LaLiga champions.
The 35-year-old Poland international headed home a second-half equaliser after Samu Omorodion had fired the visitors in front with just 18 seconds gone and then converted a late penalty to ensure an eventful afternoon at the Estadio Olimpico ended 2-1 to the hosts.
However, Samu was left to reflect on what might have been after passing up three further chances to add to his tally as Barca, who were without influential duo Gavi and Frenkie de Jong, turned in an abject first-half display before finally finding their feet.
The home side kicked off under some pressure after their their midweek Champions League defeat at Shakhtar Donetsk, which came in the wake of their El Clasico reverse and an unconvincing league win over Real Sociedad.
And they could hardly have got off to a worse start as they conceded inside the opening minute.
Ilkay Gundogan was robbed by Jon Guridi inside the Alaves half and he carved his way deep into Barca territory before picking out Javi Lopez, whose cross was swept past keeper Marc Andre ter Stegen by the 19-year-old Samu.
Things could have been significantly worse for Xavi’s men amid a shambolic start as they were repeatedly opened up by the visitors.
Samu fired into the side-netting after controlling Andoni Gorosabel’s pass, and then missed the target after the latter had split the home defence to send him one-on-one with Ter Stegen.
Shell-shocked Barcelona started to work their way into the game and Alaves keeper Antonio Sivera had to save from Lewandowski and Joao Felix.
But in the meantime, Lopez had scuffed a shot on the turn wide after catching defender Jules Kounde sleeping, and the France international was fortunate to escape for a second time when Samu fired after being muscled off the ball by the frontman.
Felix tried desperately to drag his side back into the game as time ran down, but Sivera remained largely untroubled and the locals made their feelings abundantly clear on the whistle.
Barca returned with much greater purpose and Joao Cancelo fired into Sivera’s midriff within three minutes, and they were back in it with 53 minutes gone when Lewandowski got ahead of defender Rafa Marin to power home a header from Kounde’s right-wing cross.
The visitors found themselves pinned back deep inside their own half, but almost profited from another Kounde error when he headed Ruben Duarte’s free-kick straight at Abdelkabir Abqar, although the defender was unable to convert.
Lamine Yamal tested Sivera with a swerving attempt, but the Catalans finally edged in front with 12 minutes remaining when, after Abqar had tripped substitute Ferran Torres in the box, Lewandowski emphatically dispatched the resulting spot-kick.
World Cup Girlz back in the fold? Gilbert hints at return of experienced players for Brazil friendlies
For the first time in almost nine months, it seems as if Jamaica’s interim Reggae Girlz Head coach Xavier Gilbert will have members of the World Cup squad at his disposal, when they visit Brazil for a two-match friendly international series in June.
The Girlz, who first locked horns with Brazil, and lost 0-3, at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, went one better at last year’s global showpiece in Australia, as they not only held the South American giants to a goalless stalemate, but also ensured their elimination at the group stage.
By all indications, that performance, and by extension, the fact that the Girlz made an historic appearance in the knockout stages of the World Cup, earned them even more respect from the number 10-ranked Brazilians, who are currently in preparation for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris.
The games, scheduled for June 1 and 4, are expected to assist Brazil in their preparation, while the now 42nd-ranked Jamaicans will get a much-needed test to regain their appetite for international competition, having last sported the nationals colours against Canada last September.
Since that Olympic qualifying fixture in Canada, members of the World Cup squad withdrew their services from national representation, citing lack of payment and mistreatment from the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), among their reasons.
While it is yet to be confirmed how many, if any, of the World Cup players will make the trip, Gilbert gave the clearest indication yet that there might be a few, as he welcomed the games, after not utilizing the last FIFA window.
“It is always important to secure games during the international window. It not only assists in exposing players, but it also ensures the team is active, which helps our rankings, and also our quality of play. Because as you know, the more we play together, especially against quality opponents, the better the team becomes, and we also get to work on different things both offensively and defensively,” Gilbert told SportsMax.TV.
“The expectation is for us to give a good account of ourselves, it has been a while since these players have played together, but the good thing is that they are actively engaged in their respective leagues in Europe and United States. So, it is not like they were inactive, and obviously, it is not the first time they will be playing together.
“So, we just have to keep things as simple or as close to what we did prior to, and during the World Cup, to make sure we are competitive. It is going to be a little bit different, but it’s not far-fetched that we can get another positive result against Brazil,” he added.
Atletico Madrid 3-1 Athletic Bilbao: Hosts close in on top-four finish
Atletico Madrid beat newly crowned Copa del Rey winners Athletic Bilbao 3-1 at home in LaLiga on Saturday as Diego Simeone's side moved a step closer to a top-four finish.
Fourth-placed Atletico moved onto 64 points and have increased their advantage over Athletic, in fifth, to six points with five games to play.
Midfielder Rodrigo de Paul put Atletico in front in the 15th minute with a goal from outside the box. After controlling an attempted clearance from the visitors, his effort dipped just under the bar as his strike deflected off one of the Athletic defenders.
Athletic levelled just before half-time through Nico Williams after Antoine Griezmann lost the ball through a careless pass.
But Angel Correa restored the lead for Atletico in the 52nd minute and later came close to scoring again.
With 10 minutes to play, away goalkeeper Unai Simon inadvertently made it 3-1 with an own goal after Samuel Lino’s effort came back off the post, ending any Athletic hopes of a comeback.
Hull City 3-3 Ipswich Town: Tigers fight back three times to deny Tractor Boys
Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.
Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.
However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.
With Liam Rosenior's men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot in off the crossbar to punish an error from Ipswich goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
The result keeps Ipswich behind second-placed Leeds on goal difference, though the Tractor Boys have a game in hand to come at Coventry City on Tuesday.
Hull, meanwhile, are two points adrift of the top six, with Norwich's goal difference advantage meaning their top-six spot is all but assured. The Tigers will, however, leapfrog West Brom if they beat Plymouth Argyle on the final day and Albion lose to Preston North End.
Data Debrief: Hutchinson's best not enough
Hutchinson was a man who deserved to be on the winning side on Saturday, giving Ryan Allsop no chance with two near-identical left-footed strikes from the right corner of the penalty area.
His goals came from an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.6, and he led all players on the pitch for shots (eight) and passes in the final third (21), also laying on three chances for his team-mates.
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