April 10, (THEWILL) – Barcelona came from behind to clinch a thrilling 3-2 victory over Levante on Sunday night, reclaiming second place in La Liga standings after conceding no less than three penalties.
The hosts, who did not appear to be a relegation side, pushed their star-studded guests to the limit, matching them as they played their part in a thrilling game of football, only to be left with little to show for their laborious efforts after the final whistle.
Xavi Hernandez’s side bubbled with brilliance and eventually won out, as goals from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Pedri and Luuk de Jong, were enough to negate penalties from Jose Luis Morales and Gonzalo Melero.
The tone for a tense game was set early on, with both sides seeing goalmouth action. Levante striker, Jose Luis Morales, was almost gifted a goal by Dani Alves after 20 seconds, but his effort went just wide, while Frenkie de Jong also came close with a curling effort that sailed just over the bar after a few minutes.
Morales almost scored a Puskas Award contender as he weaved his way through Barcelona only to be denied by a solo classic Ter Stegen stop and an Eric Garcia goal-line clearance. Despite other outstanding chances for both sides, when the referee blew for halftime, the score was tied at 0-0.
The game’s frenetic intensity was not dampened by the half-time interval, with numerous incidents occurring within five minutes of the restart. Torres was unlucky not to break the deadlock with a bullet header that Dani Cardenas expertly saved, only for Levante to be awarded a penalty seconds later.
Alves was the culprit, tripping Son in the 18-yard box before Morales stepped up and scored a well-earned goal.
Five minutes later, the hosts were presented with another 12-yard opportunity. Eric Garcia was unlucky to have a header touch his raised arm in the middle of a raucous defensive huddle, forcing the referee to point to the spot.
However, this time, Morales handed the ball over to striking partner Roger, who saw his effort thwarted by the safe hands of Ter Stegen.
Three minutes later, Barcelona had the ball in the Levante net. Ousmane Dembele was at the heart of the move once more, producing a pinpoint cross into the box from the right flank, which Aubameyang gladly nodded in to bring the game level just before the hour mark.
It did not take long for Xavi’s guys to pull ahead with the wind in their sails.
The substitute duo of Gavi and Pedri teamed superbly on 62 minutes to put the visitors ahead. Gavi weaved his way into the area on the left before drawing back for Barca prodigy Pedri, who swept the ball into Cardenas’ bottom corner with ease.
But the drama was far from ended. With just under ten minutes remaining, the home team was granted yet another penalty when substitute Clement Lenglet made a shamefully poor challenge on Alejandro Cantero shortly after entering the field of play.
Gonzalo Melero made no mistake in sending the ball into ter Stegen’s bottom corner for his side’s third spot kick of the night, setting up a frantic finish.
Another of Xavi’s substitutions sealed the game’s dramatic conclusion, as De Jong came off the bench to break Levante hearts and win a great game of football.
In the second minute of stoppage time, the Dutchman was on hand to head home Jordi Alba’s inch-perfect cross, securing a crucial result in the race for second place and sending Barcelona supporters into a frenzy.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
