Match Report: Valencia 2 Hércules 0

FT: Valencia 2 (Aduriz 43, Tino Costa 53) – Hércules 0

Valencia consolidated their position the race for Champions League football next season with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Hércules.

Another Tino Costa wonder strike and an altogether more scrappy effort from Aduriz were enough to give Unai Emery a confortable evening – for once victory assured without any need for last minute heroics.

Both managers had surprised with their team selections. Emery again utilising his squad, five changes this time from the side that started in Santander on Monday night, however, it was a surprise to see Aritz Aduriz paired with Roberto Soldado. Los Che’s two principal frontmen have proved good buys this season but have rarely been given the opportunity to form a partnership. Emery also surprised by excluding all of his natural wide players, a midfield diamond of Costa, Ever Banega, Mehmet Topal and Chori Dominguez chosen instead.

Esteban Vigo also made a change up front with top scorer David Trezeguet dropped to the bench. In fairness to the Hercules boss the Frenchman has yet to score on the road this season but Nelson Valdez looked far less effective playing as the main striker than he has in a supporting role for most of the season.

The early stages were, like most derby matches, littered with fouls and a number of yellow cards. Amazingly the second-half passed without a single card after five in the first had appeared the make the possibility of a red a matter of when, not if.

Unsurprisingly, Valencia were suffering from a lack of width whilst Valdez was left too isolated when the visitors had possession high up the field.

The first real chance didn’t arrive until the 38th minute. Topal’s effort striking the post after a poor clearance from Abel Aguilar had given him the opportunity from Costa’s corner. Yet, the hosts had to wait only five minutes before they did break the deadlock. Soldado for once providing some width on the right-hand side and his low cross into the near post was hooked into the net by Aduriz.

The hosts were considerably better in the second period and killed the game off within seven minutes of the restart. Aduriz had already been denied by Juan Calatayud before Costa fired in the second with a trademark, curling free-kick from 25 yards.

Vigo turned to Royston Drenthe, after his (hardly unjusitifed) strike action had seen him excluded from the side in recent weeks, and old Valencia favourite Rufete to try and turn the tide but strangely left Trezeguet on the sidelines. The introductions did offer more width and support to Valdez in attack but also opened up the visitors to a number of effective counter-attacks from the hosts.

Juanra denied the home side a third on two occasions, firstly, stopping Aduriz in his tracks after a wonderful through ball from Banega and then clearing off the line from Soldado.

In between Vicente Guaita had to make his first decent save of the game, beating away a fierce Matias Fritzler drive.

Overall, a deserved win for Los Che who closed the gap on Villarreal to just the one point. Hércules continue their abysmal run on the road – just the one victory away all season (and yes it was that one) – and now find themselves very much in a relegation fight, now locked in a group of five sides only a point outside the relegation zone.

Match Report: Hércules 0 Barcelona 3

FT: Hércules 0 - Barcelona 3 (Pedro 43, Messi 87 & 89)

So, there was to be no repeat. No second hit, no second bolt of lightning, no fuck me did that just happen?

Instead it was the regular Saturday night out for Barcelona. Another three points, another three goals, another clean sheet and another quality performance, without ever stretching beyond third gear.

Hércules started brightly, attempting to replicate the game plan that had brought them victory at the Nou Camp in September. Nelson Valdez and Kiko, playing either side of David Trezeguet, pushed high up the field to pressure Barcelona's back four when in possession. This initially allowed the hosts to prevent Victor Valdes distributing the ball from the back in the manner he is accustomed to. However, as Hércules tired in the second-half the downside of this tactic was cruelly exposed - Valdes able to deliver the ball beyond these three front players to Sergio Busquets, Maxwell or Dani Alves - leaving Hércules with three fewer players behind the ball.

Yet, whilst the Alicantans energy levels were still brimming in the first-half, their aggressive pressing style did have a modicum of success. Despite early warning shots from Leo Messi and Pedro the home defence was relatively untroubled. And the hosts could have been ahead on 21 minutes. An accurate diagonal ball found Valdez in the area and his clever back-header left Trezeguet with the goal at his mercy. However, with the ball bouncing awkwardly, the former French international was unable to wrap his foot around it and only succeeded in proding wide.

Having been let of the hook Barcelona then started to dominate. Pedro was denied by Peña before Alves and David Villa failed to find the target. It wasn't long, though, before the visitors were in front. Xavi, almost inevitably, the creator with a wonderful first time pass through for Pedro to fire home.

The goal was the Canarian's 19th of the season, the sixth league game in a row in which he has hit the back of the net. I seem to repeat this every week but Pedro has become an integral member of the Barca starting XI and any talk of Fernando Torres heading to Catalonia fails to acknowledge just how good he has been for the past 18 months.

The second-half was much more comfortable for the champions as Hércules' intensity dropped. The visitors enjoyed upwards of 70% of the possession and could and should have killed the game off long before they did.

Xavi fired just wide after he and Messi had worked space on the edge of the area five minutes after the break before Valdez had Hércules' only effort of the second period. However, his tame volley bobbled into the hands of his namesake in the Barcelona goal.

Messi then went agonisingly close on two occasions, shooting wide of both Catalayud's posts, before the Hércules keeper produced a fine save from the Argentine.

Despite the dominance of his side Pep Guardiola couldn't relax until the final five minutes when a hat-trick of nails were hammered into the Hércules coffin. Firstly, substitute Francisco Farinos was sent-off for two yellow cards following an ill-advised lunge on Busquets. Messi then eventually did get his goal with a trademark shimmy and finish on his left foot. And within two minutes he had a second, the rampaging Alves with a terrific run and cross allowing the Argentine the simplest of finishes.

It was a 15th consecutive league victory for Pep's boys who, let's face it, look like they could easily win another 15 on the trot. The gap over Real Madrid has again been extended to seven points and with a tricky trip to Pamplona in store for Mourinho's men tomorrow night the pressure has been pushed up a notch.

As for Hércules, well Trezeguet said it better than I could:

"We play in a different league from Barcelona. We can just continue to prepare for Valencia next week."

Match Preview: Hércules v Barcelona

Unsurprisingly the build up to Barca’s trip to Alicante has been dominated by talk of the last time these teams met. It was the shock, if not the result and performance, of the season. The newly promoted, unheralded Hércules taking the Nou Camp by storm and winning 2-0.

The most surprising element of the game being that it could have been more. This was no means the smash and grab method of getting a result against the champions – the manner in which those few teams who have taken points of Pep Guardiola’s men in recent seasons have found most fruitful. But for Victor Valdes and occasionally erratic finishing the score would have been even more jaw-dropping. So, if Hercules displayed the perfect game plan in combating Barcelona’s tiqui-taca style, can lightning really strike twice?

The smart money wouldn’t be on a repeat. Arguably the performance of the Catalans that day gave more of an insight into how brilliant they have been the rest of the season. It is not always as easy as they make it look and when they are not firing on all cylinders it is possible for mere mortals, or even mythical figures, to overpower them. It would also be fair to mention that over half of the Barca team that day had just arrived back from a 13,000 mile round-trip to Buenos Aires for Argentina’s 4-1 friendly victory over Spain.

Since that fabled day in early September the leaders have not been defeated in the league and are looking for a league record 15th consecutive victory this evening. Dani Alves is likely to return at right-back with Eric Abidal deputising again for injured captain, Carlos Puyol, at cente-back. Sergio Busquets, who signed a new five-year deal in midweek, should also return in place of Javier Mascherano in the holding role. The regular front five of Iniesta, Xavi, Pedro, Villa and Messi all expected to start again after coming through Wednesday’s 5-0 win in the Copa Del Rey semi-final over Almeria unscathed.

The task for Esteban Vigo is much more complicated. Not only does he have to drill his team to deal with that front five that he has been in such sensational form over recent weeks but he must do so without his two first choice central defenders. Mohamed Sarr and Sergio Rodriguez expected to fill in for the injured Abraham Paz and Noe Paramot.

Roston Drenthe is again left out of the squad as the fall-out from his dispute with the club continues but the potent duo of Nelson Valdez and David Trezeguet will start in attack.

Probable Line-Ups:

Hercules (4-2-3-1): Calatayud; Cortes, Sarr, Rodriguez, Pena; Fritzler, Aguilar; Tote, Gomes, Valdez; Trezeguet

Barcelona (4-3-3): Valdes; Maxwell, Abidal, Pique, Alves; Busquets, Xavi, Iniesta; Villa, Messi, Pedro