Barcelona captain, Andres Iniesta, could be out for eight weeks

Barcelona captain Andres Iniesta will be out for six to eight weeks after injuring knee ligaments in the dramatic win over Valencia.

The midfielder was injured by an Enzo Perez tackle after 14 minutes of the 3-2 win and left on a stretcher.
He could miss the rest of the Champions League group games and is definitely out of the match at Manchester City on 1 November.
Barca won thanks to a late Lionel Messi penalty, his second goal of the game.
Luis Enrique' side, who went top with the win, are also going to be without Iniesta's fellow Spain internationals Gerard Pique and Jordi Alba through injury for the City game.

Guardiola won’t sacrifice style despite Barca blunders

Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola was defiant he will not change his ways despite a harrowing night for goalkeeper Claudio Bravo on his return to Barcelona as a Lionel Messi hat-trick inspired a 4-0 Barca win on Wednesday.

Bravo was sent-off with City trailing just 1-0 for saving Luis Suarez’s effort when outside his area after gifting the ball to the Uruguayan striker, putting Guardiola’s decision to jettison England number one Joe Hart under more scrutiny.

“Until the last day I am a coach I will try to play from the goalkeeper,” said Guardiola.

“Of course you cannot play all the time, but it was a mistake and it sometimes happens.”

Bravo enjoyed two almost faultless years at Barca before joining City in August, but has endured a shaky start under Guardiola’s firm instructions to build City’s attack from the back.

“He (Bravo) has a lot of experience, he is one of the best goalkeepers in the world for the last 10 years, but he will learn and is the first one in the dressing room to apologise.”

Bravo’s gaffe was just one of many City defensive howlers on the night as Messi took advantage of Fernandinho’s slip to give Barca an early lead.

Messi curled home a second before Ilkay Gundogan’s misplaced pass played in Suarez, who squared for Messi to complete his hat-trick.

The scoreline could have been even more embarrassing for City had substitute goalkeeper Willy Caballero not saved a penalty from Neymar before the Brazilian made amends with a brilliant fourth.

“It is always difficult to play in Barcelona with 11 players and with 10 the game was over,” added Guardiola.

“We created enough chances, we arrive at the byline many times, but with their strikers when they arrive they punish you.”

Guardiola won his first 10 games in charge, but City have now failed to win any of their last four matches and the Catalan lamented the series of error-strewn performances affecting his side.

A 3-3 draw at Celtic was followed by a 2-0 defeat at Tottenham Hotspur before City missed two penalties in a 1-1 draw with Everton on Saturday.

“Starting in Glasgow, own goals in White Hart Lane (against Tottenham), missing penalties, we give a lot for the opponents,” he added.

Guardiola, who won 14 trophies in four years in charge of Barca, has now lost on both occasions he has returned to the Camp Nou after losing 3-0 in 2015 when with Bayern Munich.

However, Guardiola’s former teammate and Barca boss Luis Enrique agreed Bravo’s dismissal changed the game.

“The sending-off was decisive and conditioned the game a lot,” said Enrique.

“Teams that try to play from the back know those errors can happen and you have to accept it. In the long-run it is more beneficial.”

Messi has now scored two hat-tricks in as many games in this season’s Champions League as the Argentine showed no signs of rust on his first start for a month after a groin injury.

“We have seen the calm that Messi has to finish inside the area as if he was in the school yard,” added Enrique.

“If there is anything you can expect of Messi it is that. It doesn’t matter how many days he has been out or the games he has missed.”

AFP

Barcelona's Luis Suarez one of world's best thanks to Liverpool - Rakitic

Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic has told The Times he believes Luis Suarez became one of the best players in the world thanks to his time at Liverpool.
Suarez joined Liverpool from Ajax in Jan. 2011 and became one of the most coveted stars in football during his three-and-a-half-year stint at Anfield.
The Uruguay international scored 82 goals in 133 appearances for the Reds and was PFA Players' Player of the Year for 2013-14 before moving to Barcelona for £75 million in summer 2014.

Suarez, Neymar put five past Gijon, fire Messi-less Barcelona top of La Liga

Barcelona’s midfielder Rafael Alcantara (L) celebrates a goal with teammates Barcelona’s Uruguayan forward Luis Suarez (2nd L) and Barcelona’s Brazilian forward Neymar during the Spanish league football match Real Sporting de Gijon vs FC Barcelona at El Molinon stadium in Gijon on September 24, 2016.
ANDER GILLENEA / AFP

Barcelona shrugged off the absence of Lionel Messi to move to the top of La Liga as Luis Suarez and Neymar were on target in a 5-0 thrashing of Sporting Gijon.

The hosts enjoyed the better of the opening half-hour, but were hit by a two-goal Barca burst in three minutes as Suarez rounded Ivan Cuellar to slot home the opener before Rafinha headed home a second.

Sporting were reduced to 10 men 16 minutes from time when Alberto Lora saw a second yellow card and Barca made their man advantage count as a Neymar double and Arda Turan rounded off the scoring in the final 10 minutes.

Real Madrid can regain a three-point lead over Barca with victory when they travel to Las Palmas later on Saturday.

Barca coach Luis Enrique made five changes to the side that started Wednesday’s 1-1 draw with Atletico Madrid as Andres Iniesta, Ivan Rakitic, Javier Mascherano and Jordi Alba joined the injured Messi in dropping out.

The champions looked unsettled in the early stages and goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen was lucky to escape further punishment when he gave away a free-kick for handling outside his area with the score still level at 0-0.

However, one moment of Suarez magic turned the game in Barca’s favour as he raced onto Turan’s through ball and flicked the ball past the onrushing Cuellar before slotting into an empty net.

A fine team goal put the game beyond Sporting moments later as Neymar freed Sergi Roberto down the right and Rafinha met his cross with a powerful near-post header.

Barca appeared to have eased up in the second half ahead of Wednesday’s visit to Borussia Moenchengladbach in the Champions League as Sergio Busquets and Suarez were replaced by Denis Suarez and Paco Alcacer.

However, the goals flowed after Lora dived in on Roberto to leave his side a man light.

Alcacer was denied his first Barca goal when he smashed the ball off the underside of the bar, but Neymar mopped up the rebound to make it 3-0.

Roberto was the provider once more for the fourth as Turan powered home his cross at the back post four minutes later.

Denis Suarez then teed up Neymar to sweep home his second of the game two minutes from time.

And the Brazilian could even have had a hat-trick when he curled another effort off the post in stoppage time.

Diego Costa responds to Spanish media: ‘If I was a natural Spaniard my critics would say I had a good game’

Diego Costa believes he is unfairly criticised by the Spanish media and feels it happens because he is not Spanish by birth and does not play for Real Madrid or Barcelona.

An injury to Álvaro Morata saw Costa come off the bench in the first half of Spain’s 2-0 win away at Belgium in an international friendly on Thursday, and shortly after coming on he provided the lay-off for David Silva’s opening goal.

The 27-year-old has scored just one goal in 11 appearances for Spain since switching nationalities from his native Brazil in 2014, but defended his performance against Belgium.

“They criticise me a lot and if I played for Real Madrid or Barça and was a natural Spaniard they’d say I had a good game, possibly my best for the team,” Costa said on Thursday.

“I didn’t score but I can be useful to the team. I participated a lot in the game and I leave here happy, unlike in other games.“

Costa has had disciplinary breaches with his club Chelsea, including being banned for three games for stamping on Liverpool’s Emre Can last year, but has largely kept out of trouble while representing Spain.

“I haven’t done great things for Spain, I can’t lie, but when I play well they should say so. They criticise me for my character, but I also have quality,” said Costa.

Silva scored the second goal against Belgium from the penalty spot to round off a comfortable 2-0 win in coach Julen Lopetegui’s first game in charge since succeeding Vicente del Bosque.

Lopetegui recalling Costa after Del Bosque left him out of the squad for Euro 2016 was one of a number of eye-catching decisions the new coach made in his first squad announcement, including dropping the former captain Iker Casillas.

Spain begin their qualifying campaign for the 2018 World Cup at home to Liechtenstein on Monday and Costa said he is optimistic about his and the team’s fortunes under the former Porto and Spain Under-21 coach.

“A new era has started. I have faith in my team mates,” said Costa. “It’s true that I have unfinished business with scoring but today I felt good and the goals will come.

“I’d be more concerned if I didn’t have chances, but the team is creating them and that’s good. I will score soon.”

La liga: Suarez hits hat-trick as Barcelona trash Betis

Lionel Messi and hat-trick hero Luis Suarez were in sensational form as they helped Barcelona start their title defence with a crushing 6-2 win over Real Betis at the Camp Nou on Saturday.

Messi scored twice and set up another goal, dominating proceedings, while Suarez added three of his own after Arda Turan’s opener.

Ruben Castro struck a brace for Betis but at no stage of the game did it seem like the visitors had enough to prevent Luis Enrique’s team from running amok on the opening day of the new Spanish season.

New signings Samuel Umtiti and Denis Suarez started for Barcelona, standing in for Javier Mascherano and Andres Iniesta respectively, as Barcelona battled with a long list of absences.

Regardless, it took just five minutes for the hosts to open the scoring, with Turan putting the finishing touch on a fine move. Messi scooped the ball diagonally into the area, finding the marauding Jordi Alba, who cut it back for Turan to prod home.

Along with his two strikes against Sevilla that sealed Barcelona’s Spanish Super Cup win last week, the goal meant he has already scored more this season than he did in his disappointing debut campaign with Barcelona.

While Turan is starting to come to life in a Barca shirt, goalkeeper Claudio Bravo is set to end his time at the Camp Nou, with a move to Manchester City reported to be close.

Barcelona fans chanted for him to stay as he prepared to defend Ruben Castro’s free-kick, but the Chilean goalkeeper got nowhere near it as the ball flew into the top-right corner.

The hosts reacted instantly. Turan had a half-chance to restore Barcelona’s lead but couldn’t direct Sergi Roberto’s raking low cross on target, before Denis Suarez had a strike deflected over and Messi cracked a strike against the crossbar.

Eventually Messi put them back ahead with a thunderbolt from outside the box. As he shaped to shoot everybody in the stadium knew what was coming, but there was still nothing goalkeeper Antonio Adan could do to stop it as the Argentine lashed home.

Shortly before the break Luis Suarez got on the scoresheet too, when he expertly drilled home Sergi Roberto’s cutback, putting the game beyond Gus Poyet’s Betis, who couldn’t have asked for a tougher opening fixture.

Barcelona continued to pile on the pressure in the second period, with Messi twice foiled by Adan, while Denis Suarez had a strike saved too and the assistant referee’s flag stopped Turan from adding to his tally after he bundled home from close range.

Then came two goals in quick succession, Messi setting up Luis Suarez for a tap-in, before driving home his second and Barcelona’s fifth from outside the area again.

Messi nearly grabbed his hat-trick but Adan pushed a stinging effort away as Barcelona toyed with Betis at will, before Luis Suarez whipped home a vicious free-kick for his own treble and Castro notched a late consolation.

Villarreal go to Granada later before Sevilla host Espanyol, with Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid in action on Sunday.

Zinedine Zidane’s side are at Real Sociedad and Atletico entertain promoted Alaves.