Three talking points from Leganes 0-1 Barcelona

Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images

A hard-fought win for Hansi Flick’s side

Barcelona show their hunger

Barcelona were forced to dip deep against Leganes on Saturday to come up with a 1-0 win that feels huge in the context of this season’s La Liga title race.

Hansi Flick was well aware of the task facing his side, against a team they had lost 1-0 to back in December, naming a strong team and resisting the urge to rotate.

His assistant Pepe Conde also urged the players to show their hunger in the pre-match huddle and that’s exactly what they did to claim the three points.

Leganes were predictably difficult to play against. The low block was almost as frustrating as the time wasting and there were plenty of dark arts on display at Butarque.

Yet Barcelona worked hard in a defiant showing. Wojciech Szczęsny pulled off a great stop in the first half, while Raphinha’s tracking back and eye-catching tackle to prevent an almost certain goal right on half-time showed the hunger needed to win this game.

In such a match chances were always going to be few and far between and, as Barca didn’t manage a single shot on target in the first half, it was perhaps no great surprise that the visitors’ winner came from an own goal.

3 - #Barcelona have benefited from three own goals in @LaLigaEn 2024/25, more than any other team (3 also from Sevilla), while #Leganés ⚪️ are, with three, the team in the competition with the most own goals scored this campaign. Confusion. pic.twitter.com/ZwcATsxQmC

— OptaJose (@OptaJose) April 12, 2025

Barca then had to see it out and needed to bare their teeth. Frenkie de Jong came on and took control as well as enjoying a little spat with Munir.

We were also treated to the sight of Flick deciding against giving the ball back to Leganes late on, presumably in response to the hosts’ sh*thousing their way through the game.

Hansi Flick learned the ways of Leganes!

pic.twitter.com/NmX77U5PKN

— Barça Spaces (@BarcaSpaces) April 12, 2025

But the best moment of all was Inigo Martinez’s goal-saving challenge late on (more on him later) to deny Munir which was celebrated throughout the Barca ranks as if it were a goal. One of the moments of the season for sure.

Time for Martin to step up for Barca

Barcelona lost Alejandro Balde to injury in the first half which will be a real blow to the Catalans ahead of the business end of the season.

Balde has been impressive all season long for Barcelona and is one of several players who have absolutely thrived under Hansi Flick

The German coach will now be keeping his fingers firmly crossed that it’s not a serious injury, but Balde’s face and evident frustration after going off spoke volumes.

Tests carried out on Sunday morning on the first team player Alejandro Balde confirm that he has a distal injury to his left hamstring. His return to action with the first team will depend on his recovery. pic.twitter.com/vgoEsQZ0tF

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) April 13, 2025

The early suggestions are Balde will be out for at least a couple of weeks, and will miss the Copa del Rey final, which means it’s time for Gerard Martin to step up for Barca

The 22-year-old has looked shaky at times in the first team at Barcelona but seems to have Flick’s trust and played a key role in the only goal by winning the ball back and sending Raphinha free.

Martin is now facing the biggest test of his career in the coming weeks, with key games on the horizon, and Barca will be hoping he can grab the opportunity with both hands.

Inigo Martinez supplies the wow factor

Flick piled the praise on Inigo Martinez ahead of this match, describing the defender as an “absolute leader” and praising his level of play this season.

The Barcelona boss was quite right of course but Martinez really didn’t have the best of games against Leganes until the final minutes when he came up big.

We have to talk about Iñigo Martínez tackle pic.twitter.com/Gyvn3HGNvJ

— 433 (@433) April 12, 2025

Leganes looked set to equalise in the dying minutes when Munir was through on goal until Martinez popped up and came up with one of the great tackles.

“For me, that’s like scoring a goal,” a jubilant Martinez said afterwards, while Flick agreed and admitted it was an “unbelievable” intervention from the veteran.

On a day when Barcelona’s attacking trident couldn’t deliver their usual heroics, and even Pedri was quiet, it was up to Inigo to deliver the team’s ‘wow factor.’

It’s certainly a moment that won’t be forgotten in a hurry, particularly if Barcelona do go on and win La Liga this season.

Source: barcablaugranes.com