Sergio Busquets’ stats for Barcelona vs Chelsea were absolutely incredible

February 21, 2018 John Football 0


Conor Laird

By
Conor Laird

Created on: February 20, 2018 11:09 pm
Last Updated: February 20, 2018 11:32 pm

The statistics surrounding the performance of Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets versus Chelsea have been garnering widespread attention online this evening.

Matchup

The two sides went head to head in a highly-anticipated Champions League last 16 first-leg clash in London, with Premier League champions Chelsea heading into proceedings having put a dismal run of form behind them with resounding victories over West Brom and Hull City respectively over the last week.

Barcelona, meanwhile, currently sit pretty atop the La Liga table following a blistering campaign to this point, with Ernesto Valverde’s men having also qualified for the Copa Del Rey final earlier this month courtesy of a 3-0 aggregate victory over Valencia.

HT

There were few chances of note over the course of the opening half-hour, with both sides, for the most part, cancelling each other out.

However, with the early influence of Lionel Messi and Eden Hazard beginning to dwindle ever so slightly, it was Willian who came to the fore in a major way as the half wore on.

The Brazilian, who’s touch and movement looked on point throughout the opening 45 minutes, whipped a brilliant effort onto Marc-André ter Stegen’s right-hand post with 32 minutes on the clock, with the ball having looked destined for the bottom corner from the moment it left his right boot.

And, incredibly, just 8 minutes later, Willian struck the post for the second-time, albeit the left post on this occasion, with another glorious effort from outside the box.

1-1

The second-half started off in a similar fashion to the first, with Barcelona controlling much of the ball, but Chelsea looking dangerous on the break.

And the hosts were rewarded for their efforts just past the hour mark, as that man Willian finally got one right, shifting the ball brilliantly onto his right foot on the edge of the box and rifling home a wonderful low drive past the helpless ter Stegen.

However, Barca secured a crucial away goal 15 minutes later, as Andreas Christensen’s risky ball across his own box landed at the feet of Andres Iniesta, with the Spaniard pulling it back for the incoming Lionel Messi to drive home at the near post with aplomb.

This was how things ended, with the visitors no doubt happy to head back to the Camp Nou with an away goal, and Chelsea disappointed that their excellent showing was undone by one moment of madness.

World-class

In the aftermath of the clash, the majority of the talk regarding Barca surrounded Lionel Messi, due to the Argentine magician finding the net versus Chelsea for the first time in his career, at the 9th attempt.

However, another of the Blaugrana’s stars to have since been singled out for major praise online is Sergio Busquets.

The deep-lying Spanish midfielder was at his brilliant best over the course of the 90 minutes this evening, showcasing both his class and grit in dictating the pace of the game and breaking up muerous dangerous Chelsea attacks.

And the 29-year-old’s importance to Barcelona has since been aptly summed up by his individual statistics from the clash, as showcased below:

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