Barcelona rescue a draw against Eintracht Frankfurt

The draw means it’s all to play for at the Camp Nou in Barcelona

For the third consecutive time in the Europa League, Barcelona only managed a draw in the first leg, this time against Eintracht Frankfurt.

An unusual poor Barcelona performance saw the German side have the better of the game in the first half and should have been up by at least a goal heading into halftime if not for some poor finishing.

The home side were finally able to open the score thanks to a wonderful strike by Ansgar Knauff in the 48th minute.

Down a goal, Xavi Hernandez decided to sub on both Frenkie de Jong and Ousmane Dembele in place of Gavi and Adama Traore.

His moves paid off as Dembele gave the pass to De Jong who combined with Ferran Torres to nab the equalizer in the 66th minute. Frankfurt’s Tuta was sent off in the 78th minute but the Catalan side was unable to capitalize being a man up and settled for the draw.

Based on the proceedings, the tie was a fair result as Frankfurt had the better opportunities of the two and did well in stifling the Barcelona attack.

"“They’re a tough side, very physical and they came out like demons on the counter-attack,” Xavi said. “It made it difficult for us. The pitch was not in perfect condition, either, and didn’t help how we wanted to play.“We created less than usual, but satisfied with the result and now we have the return leg at home. Camp Nou will have to be a pressure cooker for us like their fans were here tonight.”Source: ESPN"

Aside from only managing a draw, another sour point for Barcelona is they lost Gerard Pique to injury. It may explain somewhat as to why Xavi chose to focus on the state of the pitch in his post match press conference.

The introductions of De Jong and Dembele turned things around and it showed how important they are to Xavi’s set up. Gavi and Traore did not have poor games all things considered but the other two are simply performing at a higher level at the moment.

Drawing the first leg against Napoli and Galatasaray, on both occasions, Barcelona were able to win the second leg and go through. The difference this time is the second leg will be played at the Camp Nou.

The hope is Pique’s injury isn’t too serious and will be available for the return leg. Another is the return of Sergiño Dest. Ronald Araujo played at right-back and struggled at times. Should the American be available, Araujo can then slot back in at center-back where he is accustomed.

But before Barcelona can set their sights on Eintracht Frankfurt once more, they first must travel away in LaLiga to take on Levante.