Messi provides three assists as defending champions rally to secure 3-2 come-from-behind victory over Betis; keep pace with Real in title battle
Barca's Lionel Messi (second from right) is ecstatic after a goal against Real Betis on Sunday. pic AP/PTI
Madrid: Lionel Messi provided a hat-trick of assists on Sunday as Barcelona ended their turbulent week with a thrilling 3-2 victory over Real Betis to stay in touch with Real Madrid at the top of La Liga. Madrid's 4-1 win at Osasuna earlier in the day put pressure on Barca to respond, only for Betis to twice lead at the Benito Villamarin through a penalty from Sergio Canales and brilliant solo effort from Nabil Fekir. Yet both times Barcelona hit back as Frenkie de Jong and Sergio Busquets pulled them level before Clement Lenglet headed in with 18 minutes left, all three goals teed up by Messi.
Fekir and Lenglet were then sent off in a frantic contest by the end of which, Barca had the victory they so desperately needed following a difficult few days for the club. Messi had put himself at the heart of a political spat this week by publicly taking exception to comments made by sporting director Eric Abidal, who suggested the players were the cause of the decision to sack Ernesto Valverde last month. Barcelona were then beaten by Athletic Bilbao and knocked out of the Copa del Rey before the semi-finals for the first time in 10 years on Thursday.
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"In Bilbao we played well but they knocked us out," said Barca coach Quique Setien. "This win will give us motivation and extra energy for the future." To make matters worse, winger Ousmane Dembele suffered another hamstring injury, which is likely to keep him out for the rest of the season, while centre-back Samuel Umtiti appeared in court too, for alleged damages to a rented villa. It meant defeat against Betis was unthinkable, particularly for Setien, who could ill-afford another setback against the team he managed for two years between 2017 and 2019.
Instead, Barca turned the tide, with a chaotic performance that might have been punished by better opponents, but that keeps them three points behind Real Madrid, who had earlier won at a canter in Pamplona.
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