Lionel Messi punished Granada for conceding a free-kick in the 41st minute of tonight’s La Liga encounter after a push on starlet Pedri right on the edge of the box.
Messi stepped up, facing a Granada side that had all 10 of their outfielders in the box – nine of which were in a wall alongside two Barcelona players – and still scored.
It looked as though Granada had prevented the opportunity of a low strike making its way through, as one player lied down in the wall, but Messi just went the other side and drilled the ball through a gap that promising young defender Oscar Mingueza helped to create in the wall.
This marks the all-time great’s second goal of the night, with Messi hitting the target seven minutes earlier thanks to a brilliant run from Antoine Griezmann that left Granada quaking in their boots.
Pictures from Premier Sports and Eleven Sports.
Messi has well and truly silenced those that have critiqued his free-kick taking since the start of the season, with Granada’s best efforts still not enough to stop the 33-year-old.