Barcelona and Villarreal played out a eight-goal thriller with Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez both scoring worldies. Loading… Barcelona raced into a two-goal lead thanks to goals from Philippe Coutinho and Malcom. However, Villarreal then scored four goals without reply to make it 4-2. Advert 10 Samuel Chukwueze, Karl Toko Ekambi, Vicente Iborra and Carlos Bacca all got on the score-sheet with ex-Arsenal hero Santi Cazorla creating two goals. ' GOAL! ' Iborra flick, Cazorla through ball, Chukwueze finish (second time around)! The goal that got Villarreal back in the game against Barcelona :yellow_heart:#LaLiga pic.twitter.com/7R8Ygy63l3 - Eleven Sports (@ElevenSports_UK) April 2, 2019 But Barcelona left it late as they rescued a point deep, deep into stoppage time. Messi reduced the deficit after scoring yet another free-kick. He curled in a beauty on the edge of the box. He literally takes free-kicks like they're penalties. Advert 10 The regularity with which Messi scores free-kicks. He fairly makes bits of every previous free-kick "specialist" in history. - Miguel Delaney (@MiguelDelaney) April 2, 2019 And with seconds remaining, Suarez fired in a stinging strike into the back of the net to secure a dramatic draw. ' GOAL! ' WHAT A FINISH :scream: Luis Suarez nets the equaliser, Barcelona have somehow made it 4-4 against Villarreal! #LaLiga pic.twitter.com/7WRmKA917P - Eleven Sports (@ElevenSports_UK) April 2, 2019 Advert 10 2 goals in the last seconds for @FCBarcelona to come back to 4-4. A freekick from substitute Messi obviously, and a sensational goal from @LuisSuarez9 :clap::clap: - Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) April 2, 2019<doc-sep>Barcelona appeared to be staring at a defeat against Villarreal on Tuesday night, but Lionel Messi had other ideas to help them secure a 4-4 draw. The Catalan giants were 4-2 down heading into the last minute of normal time, although Villarreal had been reduced to 10 men to set up a frantic finish. SEE MORE: Video: Malcom bags first La Liga goal as he shines for Barcelona vs Villarreal Their nerves were multiplied when Messi stepped up and produced this moment of magic as seen in the video below, as the 31-year-old delivered when his side needed him to despite being left on the bench by coach Ernesto Valverde who opted to rotate and rest his key players. That in turn gave Barcelona hope of snatching a point, and that’s exactly what they did with Luis Suarez scoring in the 93rd minute to claim a share of the spoils. The Uruguayan stalwart produced an exceptional finish of his own, as seen below, drilling in an equaliser in dramatic fashion. As a result, Barcelona have still suffered just two defeats in the league all season, and remain eight points clear of title rivals Atletico Madrid ahead of facing them at the Nou Camp this weekend. However, Tuesday night will be seen as a point gained after their heroic late display, with Messi unsurprisingly at the heart of it. Messi Goal free kick own by la liga kkk pic.twitter.com/0iKUZYnsII — kay q u e (@TNKayq3) April 2, 2019<doc-sep>Once you have subscribed we will use the email you provided to send you the newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link at the bottom of the newsletter email. Lionel Messi has proven once again this week that he will go down as one of the greatest footballers to ever play the game. On Saturday, the Argentine international scored a ridiculous 'Panenka' free-kick against Espanyol, as he clipped his effort over the wall and into the net. In the fixture before that, he scored a stunning hat-trick against Real Betis - with one of his goals being an audacious chip he had absolutely no right to score. So, after his recent exploits, Messi deserved a little break and he was named on the bench for Barcelona's trip to Villarreal on Tuesday night. However, that decision backfired in quite a spectacular way as the Blaugrana found themselves level with their relegation-threatened hosts on the hour mark. Messi was then brought on to try and tip the balance but things got even worse while he was on the pitch, as Villarreal took a 4-2 lead. It looked for certain that Barca were about to drop points, but in the nick of time, their Argentine genius popped up to spark a comeback. With 89 minutes on the clock, the visitors won a free-kick in the perfect position and Messi stepped up to take it. There was really no doubt that it was going to end up in the net as the number 10 expertly whipped another stunning set-piece past the goalkeeper. Check it out below. Absolutely brilliant. He really can put a free-kick in any corner of the goal and find a way to beat the 'keeper. After Messi's 89th minute free-kick, it was Luis Suarez who scored at the death to make it 4-4 with the last kick of the game. Despite being 4-2 down with just 10 minutes to play, Barca managed to salvage a point that could be very important in the title race. And Messi's latest magical set-piece played a huge part in the result. News Now - Sport News<doc-sep>
Lionel Messi came off the bench to help Barcelona salvage a dramatic 4-4 draw at struggling Villarreal. With Barca trailing 4-2, Messi scored a 90th-minute free-kick before Luis Suarez drilled home a low, half-volley deep into added time to secure a point from a game the La Liga leaders led 2-0 after 16 minutes. Philippe Coutinho and Malcom, with his first La Liga goal, appeared to have laid the foundations for a regulation victory but Samuel Chukwueze, Karl Toko Ekambi, Vicente Iborra and substitute Carlos Bacca turned the game on its head as Villarreal scored four against Barca for the first time since April 2001. But after Villarreal's Gonzalez Alvaro was shown a second yellow card, the visitors took advantage to earn a draw and ensure they will take an eight-point advantage into the weekend's meeting with second-placed Atletico Madrid. Image: Griezmann Atletico extended their lead over city rivals Real to five points with a 2-0 win at home to Girona earlier in the evening. Koke hit the crossbar with the hosts' best effort of the first half but it took until the 76th minute for them to break the deadlock through defender Diego Godin's close-range header. Antoine Griezmann's 19th goal of the season deep into added time secured the three points. Fourth-placed Getafe missed the chance to open up a five-point gap to the chasing Alaves after they were held to a 1-1 draw at Espanyol. The hosts took a 56th-minute lead through Borja Iglesias but Angel secured a point 18 minutes from time.