Suarez Comes Back to Haunt Koeman!

First-half strikes from Luis Suarez and Thomas Lemar pile even more pressure on beleagured Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman. The same two players provide the assists, as Atlético beat Barcelona 2-0 at home.

Despite having more possession, Barcelona were 2nd best at the Wanda Metropolitano. The president of the Catalan giants Joan Laporta claimed on the morning of this match that the result would not change anything. This was probably only true in the sense that manager Ronald Koeman was already a dead man walking!

Joao Felix went close on 16 minutes, but it was Thomas Lemar who scored the opener for Atlético. He finished left-footed into the roof of the Barcelona net, after a dynamic move featuring Felix and Luis Suarez.

After an uncharacteristic Suarez miss on 27 minutes, Lemar then turned provider for the Uruguayan who slotted home against his former club and put Diego Simeone’s Atlético in total command of the game!

The Catalan club did create some chances. Firstly, Philippe Coutinho volleyed an effort just wide and then Frenkie de Jong was just inches away from netting from close range, following Memphis Depay’s header across goal.

For all the gloom surrounding Barcelona this season, this loss was actually only their 1st in La Liga, but it leaves them 8th in the table on 12 points. This is 5 behind Simeone’s side, who are 2nd only on goal difference but have played a game more than rivals Real Madrid.

Before this game, Barcelona had 3 wins and 3 draws to their name in the Spanish top-flight. However, it’s the back-to-back 3-0 losses in the Champions League against Bayern Munich and Benfica, that have done the most to harm Koeman’s position at the club.

With this result, reigning La Liga champions Atlético Madrid go level with Real Madrid at the top of the table. As for Barcelona, you sense that a big change is coming at Camp Nou soon!