SAN FRANCISCO, December 02, (THEWILL) –Â Frenchman Antoine Griezmann was on the scoresheet for Barcelona again as the Catalan side eased to a comfortable 3-0 victory over Hungarian outfit Ferencvaros in the UEFA Champions League Group G fixture on Wednesday.
Griezmann struck early on as he netted in three consecutive games for the first time since he arrived at Camp Nou. Forward Martin Braithwaite and winger Ousmane Dembele were also on the scoresheet for Barcelona.
Winning this tie ensured Barca win their first five group stage games in Europe for the first time since the 2002-03 campaign. They also lead second-placed Juventus by three points with one match remaining which THEWILL believes will be a cracker as it is pits these two football heavyweights against each other.
Just like the last outing, Ronald Koeman rested team captain and talisman Lionel Messi for the trip to Hungary. And the squad played some superb football without the influential Argentine.
Griezmann opened the scoring for the visitors in the 14th minute. It was an elegant finish as the forward backheeled into the net a well-hit low cross from left back Jordi Alba.
Soon after, Koeman’s charges increased their advantage. Following a string of successive passes in keepball possession, Dembele went at the Ferencvaros defence in a pacy run then pulled out an inviting cross which Braithwaite met with a sliding boot.
Braithwaite was more than a handful for the hosts’ defence. In trying to keep him in check, centre back Abraham Frimpong miss-timed his tackle and brought him down just before the half-hour. Referee Alexey Kulbakov pointed to the spot.
Dembele confidently stepped up and sent Ferencvaros goalkeeper Denes Dibusz the wrong way with a clinical spot-kick.
It could have been four before the break but Braithwaite tamely shot wide from a good position. Then, Barcelona started to take things easy in the second half.
In a moment of individual charge, Dembele burst into life when he rampaged forward on a fine solo run and fired at goal, only to see his shot fly into the side netting.
He remained Barca’s main threat for the remainder of the contest even twice forcing smart saves out of Dibusz late in the game, in their stylish win.
Barcelona are back in La Liga action on Saturday with an away fixture against Cadiz while Ferencvaros head to Diosgyor in Hungary’s top flight.
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.
