Staff Reporter.
Barcelona ended a torrid 2021 in disappointing fashion with a La Liga draw at 10-man Sevilla.
Xavi’s men failed to find a win that would have taken them up to fourth.
Sevilla led following a training-ground move from a corner, as Ivan Rakitic rolled the ball into the area for Alejandro Gomez’s first-time finish.
Ronald Araujo’s header levelled before half-time and although Jules Kounde was sent off for throwing the ball at Jordi Alba, Barca could not break through.
The visitors did have chances with their man advantage but Gavi could not find the target with his free header and Ousmane Dembele curled against the post with six minutes remaining.
On-loan striker Luuk de Jong came on as a substitute and could have netted against his parent club deep in injury-time, but a weak header was straight at Sevilla goalkeeper Bono.
Xavi’s side do move up one spot to seventh, while second-placed Sevilla failed to make up ground on league leaders Real Madrid and are now five points adrift of Carlo Ancelotti’s men.
“We’ve dropped two points,” Xavi said in his post-game news conference. “We deserved to win, even when it was 11 against 11, but I’ve seen a Barcelona with character and that’s what I want. The team is growing.
“So, overall, it’s a bittersweet feeling. I will struggle to sleep [because] we had to win, especially against 10. We must be calmer when we have the extra man, but I am proud of the team despite the result, which was the worst part of the game.”
There was still time for Alba to force a final save from Bounou in stoppage time, too, as both teams were forced to settle for a point.
We’ve taken a step forward. We played well against a difficult side in Sevilla. We deserved more because we were better in the second half. There were good spells in the first half, too, so it’s a shame we switched off a little for their goal. We’re on the right path,” Araujo said after the match.
Xavi added: “We lacked some fortune. Ousmane [Dembele] hit the post, Gavi came close. The team competed, they’re improving and pressing well. Barca are built to win games, but we’re on the right path. This Barca is what I want.”
Barca travel to Mallorca in their next game on 2 January, hoping 2022 brings better fortunes after losing superstar Lionel Messi on a free transfer, sacking manager Ronald Koeman and being knocked out of the Champions League group stage this year.