Marc-André ter Stegen had an afternoon of real toss-ups in Villarreal-FC Barcelona (1-5). After his serious failure against Monaco, which changed the course of the match due to the expulsion of Eric García, the Barça captain excelled in El Madrigal with a great first half where, unfortunately, he was seriously injured after injuring his left knee. The illness looks very bad, waiting for tests to confirm the time of sick leave.
The one from Mönchengladbach started the day by conceding a goal from Yeremy Pino in the 8th minute, who luckily was clearly ahead. With Barça granting more space than usual, as a result of an alternative defense with Sergi Domínguez and Gerard Martín, the German international had a lot of work to do from the start. Eric García also had problems in containment and the duel was a give and take from start to finish.
Ter Stegen, providential in the Barça goal until his injury
In the 12th minute, Ter Stegen made his first great save of the afternoon with a right-handed save, purely on reflex, after a shot from Pepé. Jules Koundé completed the job, blocking Baena's shot after the Barça goalkeeper's clearance. Seven minutes later, just before Barça's first goal, Marc-André responded again in a one-on-one with Baena, which was ruled out due to the Spanish player's previous offside.
The 'yellow submarine' reduced the deficit in the 38th minute through Ayoze Pérez, after a mistake by the Barça defence after a through pass from Baena to Pepé. The former Arsenal striker had the chance to equalise in the 43rd minute, taking advantage of an error in Pedri's exit, but the '1' once again grew in size in the one-on-one with the Ivorian, deflecting his shot to the corner. After the corner kick came the injury, in a play in which the Barça goalkeeper hung on to the ball masterfully, but landed badly by putting all his body weight on his right leg. Last season, the '1' was also out for almost three months due to a back injury.
Thanks to Ter Stegen's saves, Barça went into the break with an advantage, making the most of Robert Lewandowski's double. For this reason, at FCBN we award the 'MVP' of the match to the Barça captain, hoping that his injury is less serious than expected. In the second half, Villarreal's lack of aim and the devastating Barça strike, led by the inspiration of Raphinha (double) and Lamine Yamal, did the rest so that the Catalans ended up giving the home team a 'hand in', avenging the 3-5 of the 'yellow submarine' last season in Montjuïc. The win also allows Hansi Flick's men to maintain their perfect form in the league, with a five-point advantage over Real Madrid.