Frenkie de Jong grabbed a goal and an assist as Barcelona extended their winning run in La Liga with a 2-0 victory over Elche.
Frenkie de Jong was named the man of the match as Barcelona strolled to a 2-0 victory over Elche on Sunday afternoon.
Given the form of both sides, the Catalans were expected to claim a win against Elche, and there was no upset at the Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero.
Barcelona had won their last three consecutive La Liga games and it was no surprise they were favorites to win against an Elche side in the relegation zone and without a win in their last five games.
Barcelona dominated the opening exchanges but failed to create clear-cut chances at the opposition goal.
The Blaugrana put in a patient, probing first-half performance, and got their reward six minutes before the break.
Martin Braithwaite played the ball from the left for Diego Gonzalez to accidentally direct it towards goal. Frenkie de Jong was on hand to ensure it crossed the line for Barca’s opening goal in the 39th minute.
The second half saw Barcelona continue to dominate proceedings and Eibar goalkeeper made a string of saves to keep his side in the game.
The game was put beyond doubt when Riqui Puig connected with a cross from De Jong in the 90th minute to seal the victory for Ronald Koeman’s men.
With the win, Barca extended their unbeaten run in La Liga to 10 matches. They remain seven points behind leaders Atletico who take on Valencia later on Sunday night.
Player ratings
Elche: Badia (6), Mojica (6), Gonzalez (6), Verdu (6), Barragan (5), Marcone (7), Rigoni (6), Rodriguez (7), Guti (6), Josan (6), Boye (5)
Barcelona: Ter Stegen (7), Alba (6), Umtiti (6), Araujo (6), Mingueza (7), Pedri (6), Busquets (6), De Jong (8), Griezmann (7), Braithwaite (6), Dembele (6)
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