A first-half goal from top scorer Robert Lewandowski secured a 1-0 La Liga victory for a depleted Barcelona against struggling Getafe on Wednesday, keeping their perfect record intact after seven matches.
With key players like Pedri resting and injuries sidelining Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Dani Olmo, Gavi, Frenkie de Jong, Ronald Araujo, Fermin Lopez and Andreas Christensen, Barcelona took the lead in the 19th minute.
Lewandowski capitalized on a blunder by Getafe goalkeeper David Soria, who failed to catch a cross from Jules Kounde. Lurking in the box, Lewandowski seized the opportunity and netted his seventh goal of the season.
The hosts dominated the proceedings with almost 80% possession and 16 goal attempts but wasted numerous opportunities to win by a wider margin.
Soria made fine saves to deny efforts from Lamine Yamal, Lewandowski and three from Raphinha, who also missed a sitter in the 82nd minute, badly misfiring a header from a Kounde cross.
Barcelona almost paid a heavy price for their missed chances, as the visitors could have scored an equalizer in the dying moments.
Getafe fullback Juan Iglesias found Borja Mayoral unmarked inside the box during a quick counterattack, but the striker sliced his first-time effort in the 95th minute.
Barcelona are at the top of the standings with 21 points, four ahead of second-placed Real Madrid. Getafe sit second from the bottom with four points.
“When you dominate a game but go only one goal ahead, the opponent sees a possibility of making a run for a better result, and often that leads them to push you harder in the last minutes,” Kounde told Movistar Plus.
“But we played a good, controlled game and could have scored more goals. Sometimes it happens; you can’t always win by a big goal difference. Getafe are always a difficult team to handle. It may have cost us more than usual, but we had chances to win the game more comfortably.”
Barcelona will now visit seventh-placed Osasuna on Saturday before hosting Young Boys in the Champions League next week, looking to rebound following a 2-1 loss in their opening match at Monaco.
Content Source: www.dailysabah.com