Cristhian Stuani scores brace to deny Lionel Messi's Barcelona all three points at Camp Nou

Cristhian Stuani scores brace to deny Lionel Messi's Barcelona all three points at Camp Nou

   Barcelona were forced to drop their first points in the ongoing Spanish League season after sharing spoils with visiting Girona at the Camp Nou on Sunday, September 23.

Lionel Messi opened scoring for Catalan in the first 19 minutes of the game after receiving a precise pass from Arturo Vidal in the opponent's danger zone.
Cristhian Stuani leveled up for Eusebio Sacristán's side on the dot of 45 minutes to deny their hosts victory in the first stanza of the game.

And six minute into the second half, Stauni doubled his side's lead to put them in front for the first time in this encounter.

Former Manchester United defender Gerard Pique restored parity for the Catalan side in the 63rd minute despite playing one man short since the 35th minute after Clement Lenglet was shown red card.

The visitors settled in faster in the game as Bernardo Espinosa came close to nodding his side ahead as early as the 5th minute but his effort was blocked.

Despite conceding early in the game, the away team never stopped attacking with Portu trying to get an equaliser in the 29th minute but his shot was blocked.

Cristhian Stuani scores brace to deny Lionel Messi's Barcelona all three points at Camp Nou

Argentine star Messi got close to grabbing a brace five minutes to the end of the first half but his effort failed to find target.

And two minutes later, Uruguay forward Luis Suarez couldn't convert the chance created for him as his shot was blocked.
The home team relinquished their leadership with seconds to wrap up the first half of the meeting.

Cristhian Stuani scores brace to deny Lionel Messi's Barcelona all three points at Camp Nou

Having cancelled each other out in the course of the game, both sides were looking for the winner in the late minutes of the game.
Philppe Coutinho has been a pain in the opponent's defence since he came in for Arthur Melo in the 58th minute trying to tear Girona's defence apart, but the visitors stood strong.

Luis Suarez also presented with a few chances but his final balls went off target while Girona defenders were disciplined enough to keep the Camp Nou side from scoring in the late minutes of the game.

At the end, Eusebio Sacristán's men forced the La Liga champions to a 2-2 draw but the home team still maintain their leadership on the log with 13 points - same as Real Madrid.

Comments

Keep up to date with our latest articles and uploads...