The deadliest version of Barça also knows how to win

Special envoy to ValenciaHansi Flick's Barça also knows how to suffer. In his third season in charge, the German coach has turned a group of players who love and defend the badge as if their lives depended on every match into a team that never tires of winning, even when things get complicated, as happened at the Ciutat de València. There are no small rivals, no difficult travel arrangements, and no inconvenient kick-off times. There are no excuses: just hunger and the desire to win and score goals. One after another. In the last three matches, the Blaugrana side has opened the scoring in less than five minutes. A Levante side driven by fans who never tired of cheering reminded the Blaugranes that sometimes you also have to suffer. A wonder goal by Karim Adeyemi, already in stoppage time, served to seal the fifth triumph (2-4) in five matchdays when Barça was having its toughest time.

Levante's home ground was the setting for a new start of Blaugrana rock'n'roll, but an afternoon that began calmly for the visitors ended up becoming their most demanding duel so far. Levante, spurred on by fans who did not give up—quite the contrary, waving their scarves and encouraging their team after every blow in the form of a Barça goal—never lost their composure in the match despite having conceded the 0-2 in twenty minutes.

The first goal came from the latest player promoted by Flick: Xavi Espart returned to the starting eleven—he has been a starter in every League match. While Balde lives in absolute ostracism and Cancelo starts as a substitute, Espart made his debut as a goalscorer on a bittersweet afternoon, as he also ended up giving away a goal in the final stages.

Before the match became complicated, the Catalan full-back would find the net. Espart is a full-back with the soul of a midfielder. He loves to cut inside, link up with his teammates—in the Spanish national team's youth categories he plays as a pivot—and also pop up in the area. That is how the first goal arrived: a lay-off from Raphinha at the edge of the box and a soft, but precise shot against the post by the La Masia footballer to begin the path to a new triumph that would end up being hard-fought.

The Blaugranes score the 0-2 in twenty minutes

The Blaugrana onslaught, against a Levante side that was forced to take a step forward with the score against them so early, continued with a second goal. This time, it was on the counterattack. A long ball from Fermín looking for Raphinha's run, a poor clearance by Dela, who failed to cut the ball out well, and a masterclass from the Brazilian. Almost without an angle, he sent the ball between Ryan's legs to find Lamine Yamal arriving at the heart of the box. The winger from Rocafonda put the ball into the back of the net, thus chaining his fourth consecutive game scoring.

It seemed that the duel would lead to another Blaugrana stroll, but the match began to get ugly after the 0-2. First due to Levante's aggressiveness, and then because Barça lost control of the game against a Levante that knew how to show pride. The Catalan side complained about a very clear elbow from Víctor García to Gerard Martín, who had to change his shorts, stained with blood, after the hemorrhage caused by the blow he took to the face. Neither the debutant, the Basque referee Jon Ander González Esteban, who was in front of the action, nor the Galician Javier Iglesias Villanueva from the VAR room considered it punishable. Espart, with a blow to the pit of his stomach to save a goal from a Víctor García shot, and Eric Garcia, with another blow to the face after being sandwiched by two rival players, were the other Blaugranas affected by the toughness of a local team that knew how to pressure the Blaugranas.

Levante complicates life for Barça

Levante will have the honor of being the team that has made life most difficult for Barça. The Blaugrana ended up losing clarity in playing the ball out – the tall grass at the Ciutat de València didn't help the passing rhythm either – and the hosts believed in themselves, pushing up their lines and making Gerard Martín suffer, who received a yellow card and would end up being replaced by Christensen at halftime. Until the break, the Blaugrana saw their usual offensive exuberance reduced – Fermín and Gordon were unable to get into the game – but, helped by Rodri's good defensive work, they reached halftime with a comfortable lead on the scoreboard.

The second half started well. Very soon, Lamine Yamal was the victim of a clear penalty. Raphinha, being generous, gave it to him and the Blaugrana number 10 did not forgive. Once again, Levante knew how to recover. The Valencians managed to pose a very uncomfortable second half for Barça. Brugui, with a shot over the crossbar, was the first to threaten Joan's goal. The Blaugrana were not clicking, fatigue was starting to show against the local momentum and their fans – it had been months since Levante had lost a match at the Ciutat de València – and the problems arrived. First, Christensen saved an Ivan Romero shot off the line, who had just entered the pitch, and in the final minutes, the suffering arrived.

To manage fatigue, Flick removed Lamine Yamal from the pitch, who was grimacing, as well as Pedri and a discreet Gordon. The changes, with the exception of Adeyemi, did not improve the face of a Barça side that ended up suffering for the first time this season. Ten minutes from the end, Romero was in charge of giving hope to his team after taking advantage of a bad back pass from Espart to Christensen, in which the Dane was left blocked. The problems for the Blaugrana did not end there because Brugui scored the second with two minutes left in regulation time. The Ciutat de València roared and Barça suffered until, Adeyemi, on the counterattack and after a great individual play, sealed the result with a spectacular goal.