HIGHLIGHTS
- EIBAR 0-1 BARCELONA
FULL TIME: Barcelona, which has been largely been the second-best side on the pitch on Saturday, ends its season on the third spot, thanks to a memorable finish from world champion Griezmann.
Eibar will be heartbroken not to have eked out - what once looked more probable - a narrow victory over the Catalans.
90+2' Inui goes for glory in the last few seconds of Eibar's stay in the Spanish top-flight. The ball just clips the extension behind the goal.
90' Three minutes have been added on.
89' Yoel denies Barca an opportunity to extend the lead as he cancels out a Dembele curler.
88' Kike almost pulls Eibar level! A fiery shot from outside the box ricochets off Araujo and onto the crossbar.
84' Griezmann down the left now. He sends in a good ball inside to Pjanic, who has drilled this off target.
81' WHAAAAAT??? GRIEZMANN! RIGHT. OUT. OF. NOWHERE. Dembele darts in on the right to work a loopy cross to Griezmann on the far post. The ball does take a deflection off Arbilla but the Frenchman, like last season, hands Barca the opener in Ipurua with a stunning volley with only nine minutes remaining on the clock. This is the Frenchman's fifth goal in 14 appearances against Eibar.
78' Arbilla to have a go for goal from 23 metres out. It takes a deflection off the wall to sail into the empty chairs at Ipurua.
75' Triple sub for Eibar. Pozo in for Correa. Bigas replaces Oliveira. Quique saunters in for Enrich.
74' Koeman turns to Pjanic. De Jong is off the pitch. Pique may have just sat out his last game for the Spanish giant.
73' Yellow card - Busquets has been booked.
70' Impressive show from Dembele, who dribbles past three defenders as he dashes in from the right wing, to power a left-footed shot over the bar.
68' Let's take you all to Estadio Jose Zorrilla, albeit briefly, where Luis Suarez has just put Atletico ahead of Valladolid. A win and ATM takes the title home tonight! Find all updates from that match here .
65' Leon goes for goal. It was struck fairly well but lacked control and accuracy as the ball crashes into the stands.
64' Eibar has been penalised for a Kike handball near midfield. Busquets, who wishes to take the kick swiftly, has been asked to go deeper.
62' Alvarez comes on for Diop.
60' Leon's corner kick, flicked goalwards by Enrich, has been cleared by Araujo. Eibar hasn't looked as energetic as it was in the first 45.
55' The 18-year-old Moriba slips on the turf and takes a bad fall while trying to get to the other end of a Dembele pass. This might be bad news for Barca as the physio rushes onto the pitch. La Masia grad, the ever-smiling Puig, is coming on to make his 14th appearance in this season. Moriba, meanwhile, hobbles off.
50' Dembele tries to have a go from the left but is cramped for space. Goal kick.
47' Griezmann finds a little bit of room on the right channel to send in a low cross but Oliveira has cleaned up the potential danger. Barcelona has started off on a slightly more positive note in this half.
46' Eibar has never, in its history, beaten Barcelona. Does all of it change today?
45' Braithwaite, Umtiti and Alba are heading onto the pitch for Trincao, Mingueza and Firpo. Gil makes way for Leon.
HALF-TIME: The initial 45 minutes of the season-ending clash have been all about Eibar! From effective passes and shot-making to dangerously-offensive gameplay, the side, which is due to be relegated, has ensured, thus far, it leaves with a happy memory.
Barca, on the other hand, has been reduced to a sorry version of its former self. To say it has been disappointing, will also be an understatement.
Here goes a stat to complement - Eibar has had 11 shots so far, three of those on target. Barcelona has only had one shot on goal.
45' There will be an added minute of play, ladies and gentlemen!
42' Eibar appeals for a penalty after the ball hits Firpo's right elbow. VAR isn't interested.
39' Barcelona has just won its first corner. Yes, in the 39th minute! Griezmann, fed by a smart pass from Busquets, scoops it up only to be met with a rising header from Correa.
37' Gil, meanwhile, is struggling to continue. He has prominent wounds on his knees and thighs. The referee signals for the physios to come on.
34' Correa's searching cross has been headed away by Busquets. The visitor is on the counter-attack but cannot make it past the midfield. This is disappointing from a side, which is assured a top-four finish in the league, against a team which has been relegated from the top-flight.
33' Umtiti and Braithwaite can be seen limbering up. How long since Koeman hauls in the first change?
29' Eibar continues to dominate and how! Kike makes short work of De Jong and pulls the trigger from the edge of the box, forcing a diving stop from Neto.
27' Oliveira, unmarked, has let a brilliant opportunity, to open the scoring, slip. Correa drives the ball into the box and the Portuguese defender takes it on the full to drill this over the woodwork.
24' Correa to take the free-kick for Eibar. Enrich heads it to Diop, who directs the ball way over the bar.
23' Yellow card! Firpo enters the referee's book for a foul on Gil.
21' Mingueza's clearance almost leads to something spectacular! Punts for the skies from the midfield. With Yoel off his line, it may have posed danger for the host as the keeper darted back to ward off what was Barca's first shot on target from about 60 yards out.
17' With the corner kick out of the way, Inui tries to fire one in from outside the box but it flies wide.
15' A well-timed block from Mingueza to cancel out Enrich's shot on target has Koeman heaving a sigh of relief on the sidelines.
14' Inui breaks into a deft run, feeding the ball to Enrich up front. The latter tries to find Gil but ends up getting intercepted by the Barca defenders.
12' Kike and Enrich are hardly giving Barca any breathing space, pressing the defence line high up their zone. Gil, meanwhile, has been denied by the Blaugrana's Brazilian goalkeeper once again.
9' Mendilibar's side has shown positive intent early on. Barca, on the other hand, is yet to create any meaningful opening.
6' Eibar has been awarded the game's first corner. Gil swings wide and Enrich heads it right into Neto's mitts.
5' Araujo threads a pass to Griezmann from the right. The Frenchman does well to lay the ball in the path of Trincao, who loses possession.
2' More of an experimental squad, this, from Barca with Alba and Pique left on the bench. Neto, in the meantime, steps out to gather a decent-looking cross.
KICKOFF *whistle* And we are underway at Ipurua! Barcelona is kicking from left to right.
LINEUPS
BARCELONA
Starting XI: Neto; Dest, Mingueza, Araujo, Firpo; De Jong, Busquets, Moriba; Trincao, Griezmann, Dembele
Bench: Pena, Arnau, Pique, Umtiti, Alba, Pjanic, Matheus, Puig, Konrad, Braithwaite
EIBAR
Starting XI: Yoel; Correa, Oliveira, Arbilla, Rafa; Inui, Diop, Atienza, Gil; Kike, Enrich
Bench: Burgos, Bigas, Sergio, Quique, Muto, Cote, Recio, Garcia, Leon, Pozo, Rodrigues, Magunagoitia
RECENT FORM
EIBAR: L W W D L
BARCELONA: L W D D L
FOLLOW THE OTHER LA LIGA TITLE RACE MATCHES
PREDICTED XI
EIBAR: Dmitrovic; Correa, Oliveira, Arbilla, Cote; Gil, Diop, Atienza, Exposito; Enrich, Kike
BARCELONA: Neto; Araujo, Pique, Umtiti; Dembele, Puig, Busquets, De Jong, Alba; Griezmann, Braithwaite
#LaLigaSantander MATCH PREVIEW
Lionel Messi has been given permission by Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman to miss this weekend's final La Liga match of the season against Eibar and take holiday, the club confirmed on Friday, meaning he may have played his last game for the Catalan side.
The Argentine's contract expires at the end of June and there has been no announcement on an extension.
READ |
He requested to leave the club last year and was linked by British and Spanish media with a move to Manchester City or Paris St Germain, but ultimately stayed put for one more season.
The 33-year-old has netted 30 times in La Liga this season and is set to win Spain's Golden Boot, - the Pichichi Trophy - however, Koeman's side can at best finish third, behind arch rival Real Madrid and title favourite Atletico Madrid.
- Reuters
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