Messi-led Argentina national team to play in Kerala next year
World Cup-winning Argentinian football team led by iconic Lionel Messi will play in Kochi next year, Kerala State Sports Minister V Abdurahiman announced on Wednesday.
La Liga table-toppers Barcelona further extended their lead at the top of the table with a 2-0 win over Leganes at an empty Camp Nou on Tuesday. Youngster Ansu Fati and veteran Lionel Messi were on the scoresheet to help their team win the second league match since the resumption of the 2019-20 season following the COVID-19 hiatus.
With Fati, Clement Lenglet, Arthur Melo, Junior Firpo and Ivan Rakitic in, Barcelona manager Quique Setien brought a flurry of changes in the starting eleven that had beaten Mallorca 4-0 on Saturday.
Initially, the Leganes players looked determined to give the Catalan giants a strong fight with Roque Mesa seeing Lenglet clear a shot off the line, while Miguel Angel Guerrero fired just wide from a narrow-angle.
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Barcelona looked as the second-best side with them struggling to create enough chances. Their first genuine chance came in the form of a wide header from French striker Antoine Griezmann. However, Setien heaved a sigh of relief in the 42nd minute when Ansu Fati opened the scoring with a low shot from inside the area.
The second half began on a lowkey note with both the teams struggling to show intent until the 64th minute when Griezmann slipped the ball past Cuellar in the 65th minute only for it to be ruled out by the VAR for a narrow offside.
Two minutes later Messi was fouled in the box and sent Leganes’ goalkeeper the wrong way with his spot-kick.
The tiredness of both teams produced a series of fouls that saw Barcelona given five yellow cards in the last 10 minutes and Leganes coach Javier Aguirre sent off for apparent comments to the referee.
Tuesday also saw Espanyol take a vital point in their battle against relegation after a 0-0 draw away to fifth-placed Getafe. Carlos Bacca’s 18th-minute goal helped Villarreal strengthen their challenge for Europe with a 1-0 win at home to struggling Mallorca.
With IANS inputs
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