This doesn't stop and LaLiga continues its course while Barça competes for all possible titles. In between the tie against Borussia Dortmund, Hansi Flick's team had to visit Leganés to play a tough match.
It was difficult, but the job was done. They added three points by winning by the minimum, thanks to a solitary own goal by the pepineros. Despite this, the news isn't good: Balde has fallen along the way.
Barça defeats Leganés, but Balde falls
It was a tough match from the start, to the point that Hansi Flick had to make substitutions at halftime. The first half was summarized in a clear chance for each team, but with serious difficulties for the blaugranas to play their game. The German quickly saw the problem and left Ronald Araújo in the locker room as he was constantly being marked during the ball's exit, with De Jong coming in for him.
Minutes earlier, just before the first half ended, the bad news arrived, with Balde getting injured and requesting a substitution. In his place, the youth player Gerard Martín came in, key in the 0-1 for FC Barcelona. So far, the extent of the Spaniard's injury is unknown, but a good piece of news is that he was able to walk off the Butarque field on his own.
A few minutes into the first half, more specifically in the 48th minute, the first of the night came for Barça. Gerard Martín stole it, passed it to Raphinha, who delivered a measured pass for Lewandowski to push it in. Despite this, Jorge Sáenz cut the assist, sending the ball into his own goal in an attempt to clear it.
Despite taking the lead and forcing Leganés to open up (they started with five center-backs), it wasn't easy for Barça to dominate the scoreboard. The pepineros tried until the end, they even managed to score, although their goal was disallowed for a clear offside.
Three key points for Barça
Seven matches remain to finish LaLiga, and after 31 rounds, Barça continues to lead the competition. It hasn't been easy; in fact, last week they missed a golden opportunity to gain a six-point lead over Madrid. Despite this, this victory against leganés puts pressure on the whites, who still have to play their match for this round, visiting Mendizorroza against Alavés.
In any case, the good news for Barça is that they have done their job against Leganés... Who won in their visit to Montjuïc in the first round. And, as long as they do their job, what the rest do doesn't matter in the slightest.