Three talking points from Atlético 0-3 Barcelona | Top Vip News

And now what happens with Joao Félix?

Joao Félix took on Atlético Madrid once again in Barcelona colors and, just as he did the last time the two teams met in La Liga, scored against his parent club in the Catalan giants’ victory.

The Portuguese international has had an inconsistent season on loan at Barcelona, ​​but appears to enjoy facing his former employers. His goals make him the first player to score in both games against Atlético since a certain Lionel Messi.

Xavi had asked Félix to take on Atlético before the match and saw his striker do exactly that. “Joao Félix was very good tonight, with and without the ball. He was very motivated and made the difference,” said the coach after the game. If only he could do it every week.

But he certainly did so this week, much to the chagrin of Atlético fans. Fans were filmed spitting on his badge at the Wanda Metropolitano stadium and burning a replica of his shirt before the game. It doesn’t take much imagination to guess how they felt after seeing him score against their team once again.

However, it remains to be seen what will happen next for Felix. Surely Barça will not be able to afford the high price that Atlético will put on the forward this summer, but at the same time the fans’ vitriol towards Félix shows how difficult it may be for him to play for Atlético again.

Xavi has Atlético’s number

Xavi faced Atlético for the fifth time as Barcelona coach and achieved his fifth victory. The Barcelona coach may have his flaws, including his tendency to get into trouble, but there is no doubt that he has Atlético Madrid’s number.

Let’s not forget that this was a Barcelona team without Gavi, Pedri, Frenkie de Jong, Alejandro Balde, Andreas Christensen, Ferran Torres and Joao Cancelo and that they were facing an Atlético team that was on a 25-game unbeaten streak at home in La Liga.

However, that record was shattered when Barcelona scored three times to take all three points and virtually guarantee themselves a top-four finish. Barça is now eight points ahead of Atlético and moves into second place, two ahead of Girona.

Xavi once again trusted his youngsters, bringing on Héctor Fort (as an emergency left back) and Fermín López against Atlético and saw both players having fun in the Spanish capital. There was even time for Marc Casado to debut in La Liga.

And the Barça veterans also took a step forward. Ilkay Gundogan ran the show, Robert Lewandowski took the man of the match award and Marc-Andre ter Stegen made some crucial saves to ensure he goes 403 minutes without conceding a goal in La Liga.

All in all, it was a great victory for Barcelona and a perfect way for Xavi to say goodbye to Atlético. There is no doubt that Diego Simeone will be happy to see Xavi’s back when he steps down as Barcelona manager at the end of the season.

Lewandowski makes Barcelona dream

Robert Lewandowski also deserves praise for Barcelona’s victory over Atlético. The striker continued his excellent form by adding another goal and two assists. It is something that not many players manage to do against Atlético.

The striker is undoubtedly a man in top form, as evidenced by seven goals and three assists in his last nine games, and Barça will hope to be able to maintain this level of performance throughout the end of the season.

Xavi was undoubtedly delighted to see his number 9 leading by example. “It was difficult to progress, because they were marking us and we had prepared the third man a lot with Robert. I think he played the best game since he became a Barça player. “It’s a time to dream, that’s what I told the players.”

Victories over Napoli and now Atlético have certainly filled the team with faith and made Barcelona fans dream that a great end to the season is possible after all. Barcelona will certainly need to pause a bit with the sons of Lewandowski and Xavi in ​​this kind of form.