After a thrilling 1-0 victory over Osasuna at the Spotify Camp Nou on Tuesday night, Barcelona are closer than ever to winning La Liga for the first time in four years thanks to a late winner by Jordi Alba.
Despite playing the game’s final hour with only 10 players, Barça managed to win in the final five minutes. This puts them 14 points ahead of their nearest rivals for at least a few hours and effectively ends the title race.
Although Jordi Alba has seen his playing time drastically reduced this season due to the emergence of Alejandro Balde, the former Barça star’s dedication to the badge and impact on games has not waned.
Barcelona defeated Osasuna 1-0 in La Liga
Despite the uncertainty surrounding his future, the club would be wise to keep him around for at least one more season, as he remains a major offensive threat. His jubilant reaction to scoring the winning goal clearly indicates that his devotion to Barça remains as strong today as it did when he was a youngster in La Masia.
He ran the show all night and made some outrageous passes that constantly found his teammates in significant positions, and he deserved to score but unfortunately couldn’t make great contact on the ball when he had a big chance early in the second half. That goal would have been the cherry on top, but he was still amazing and a big reason Barça played very well against a parked bus.
The Prince got his big break the same night his father and agent met in Catalan to talk about his future when he came in for an injured Gavi in the first half and played the rest of the game. You can see how much he wants to score, but his zeal has cost the team several times when Ansu has passed up better scoring opportunities for himself.
He has trouble maintaining playing time on a team that thrives when it rapidly and frequently switches the ball because of his poor decision-making, which verges on selfishness. While I would hate to see his time at Barça end this summer, it appears that we have passed the point of no return with a player who three years ago showed great promise of becoming a club legend, and a split may be for the best.
