Rayo Vallecano add to Barcelona misery

The freefall for Barcelona shows no sign of slowing down following their second loss in three days, this time a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Rayo Vallecano.

The home side were certainly up for the game as it took only one second in for Rayo to take the ball off Barcelona. They pressed the Catalans throughout and closed them down whenever they had the ball.

Radamel Falcao scored what ended up being the winner after Sergio Busquets lost the ball in the area. The Colombian made easy work of Gerard Pique, turning him around, before his shot hit the post and rebounded into the back of the net.

Barcelona’s drop down the league table continues

The game continued its course during the second half. However, a lifeline was given to Barcelona when a foul inside the box on Memphis Depay was called a penalty.

The Dutch forward stepped up to take the penalty but saw his effort saved by Rayo goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski.

That was Barcelona’s best chance of the game. Rayo regained the momentum and, in the end, it was a comfortable win. The result meant it was Rayo’s first win over Barcelona in nearly 20 years.

The win sees Rayo Vallecano climb all the way to fifth place in the standings but with other results pending. As for Barcelona, they slip further down the table and solidify their rank as a mid-table team down in ninth place.

Mired in mediocrity, the season is getting late for the Catalans. They show no signs of improvement under Koeman and the longer his tenure goes on, the worse it seems to get. It’s now or never for Joan Laporta to make a decision.