Barcelona are tearing Racing apart every time they go forward, with Henrique and Torrejon having a torrid time at the back. And Henrique was badly at fault for Barcas second, sticking out a needless leg to trip up David Villa in the box. Having skied his penalty in the midweek cup defeat at Real Betis, Messi stepped up to calmly slot in and reveal a shirt to wish his mother a happy birthday.
Barcelona Vs Racing Santander: Messi Penalty Puts Barcelona Two Up
At the moment, Racing are working hard to regain possession and close gaps, but Barcelona are creating chances at will. Toño is keeping his team in it with a string of saves from Adriano, Pedro and Messi. When Racing do venture forward they have created a couple of opportunities, not least a point-blank header from Kennedy which Victor Valdes did well to tip over, but they need to stop giving the ball away cheaply when bringing the ball out of defence.
Was interesting to see Gerard Pique being given a rest, but to be fair to Eric Abidal Barca are hardly missing their prize centre-back. The Frenchman has been a fantastic form of late, and he has already produced a couple of timely interceptions. Half time whistle has just gone with Barcelona cruising at 2-0.
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