An Early Red sets Barça B up for a Painful Evening
The match got off to a quick start but not a favorable one. It took Villarreal B just 3’ minutes to open up the scoring.
A beautiful ball played from the midfield splits the Barça B center halves resulting in Juan Carlos Arana having one-on-on with Iñaki Peña. Arana with a cheeky chip opened the scoring.
Not even three minutes later and Villarreal B were close to their second of the game. A low driven shot from the left-flank went just wide but certainly kept Iñaki Peña on his feet.
With three shots in the first ten minutes, the opening of the match belonged to Villarreal B. The third shot required an amazing save from Iñaki Peña.
Despite the flow of the game favoring the home side, Barça B made their presence felt and would respond with controlling possession and winning the ball back quickly when losing it.
It took 15’ minutes but Alejandro Balde sending in a cross created the first real danger from Barça B.
Balde would prove to be a focal point in the clubs search for an equalizer with lively moments for the rest of the first 45’.
Every bit of danger Barça B created was generated from the left-flank and through Balde.
A brilliant one-two between the left back and Rodado would prove to be closest the Catalan side would come to scoring in the first half.
But once Akhomach received a straight red the attacking died down and the game became more even.
A valiant effort but not an ideal second 45’
Despite seeing an early red in the first half, Barça B refused to sit back and defend in hopes of hitting on a counter. They stayed true to their style and attempted to push for an equalizer.
Something that can be appreciated but it didn’t pay off.
The numerical disadvantage became too much for the side to overcome and they quickly fell 2-0 just six minutes into the second half.
A screamer from Villarreal B’s Carlo Garcia from outside of the box would hit the crossbar and find its way in. There was nothing that Iñaki Peña could do about that one.
It became evident quickly that the game was essentially over, and Villarreal B would continue to pile on the pressure.
Villarreal B continued to push for a third and came close a couple of times.
57’ minutes in saw a shot that required a save of the season candidate from Iñaki Peña.
Ten minutes later Dani Tasaende missed a golden opportunity to put Villarreal B up 3-0 with a fumbled tap in.
Fortunately for him and the club, Sergio Lozano would add to the score sheet with a shot just from the edge of the box that found the left corner. Villarreal finally got their third and certainly it was game over for Barça B.
An unfortunate result for a game that looked promising very early on.
That brings the losing streak to three as the club looks to rebound at home next week.
