Barcelona and Getafe play out uninspiring draw
Barcelona and Getafe flattered to deceive on Sunday afternoon at Camp Nou as they played out a 0-0 draw in front of a crowd of 75,000.
All the talk before the game was on Barcelona’s defensive issues with Gerard Pique aggravating an injury against Valencia in the Copa del Rey, and Samuel Umtiti having an enforced break after picking up too many yellow cards. In the end Ernesto Valverde gave a full debut to Colombian Yerry Mina, partnering him alongside Lucas Digne (a natural left back), with Sergi Roberto and Jordi Alba on the flanks.
Neither defence had much to worry about in the opening 75 minutes however, as Getafe rarely got forward themselves, and worked hard to restrict Barcelona’s front three to speculative efforts from range. Indeed the closest they did go was an curling effort from Coutinho that keeper Guaita tipped round the post.
When Barca were able to get in behind Getafe’s backline, they were stopped in their tracks by the linesman’s flag. Getafe’s disipline in defence seeing Suarez in particular ruled offside on a number of occasions.
For Barcelona this result is inconsequential. They maintain their unbeaten run and remain clear at the top of the league, while they can now concentrate on their Champions League tie against Chelsea. Getafe gain a point to consolidate their position in mid-table, safe from the drop but not threatening the European places.