Goals from Lionel Messi and Nelson Semedo ensured Barcelona beat Girona 2-0 to restore their five-point advantage at the top of LaLiga on Sunday.
Lionel Messi scored a sublime goal to make up for the missed trip to Miami as Barcelona beat Girona 2-0 on Sunday to go five points clear again at the top of La Liga. This was the fixture intended to be played in the United States but any advantage Girona maintained by keeping it at their own Montilivi ground was cancelled out by Messi, and another ruthless Barca display.
Atletico Madrid closed the gap on table-toppers Barca to two points with a 2-0 win over Getafe on Saturday, but Barca made light work of Girona in Catalonia on a rain-swept afternoon at Girona's Montilivi stadium after LaLiga's ambitious plan to stage the game in Miami fell through.
Semedo smashed home the opener nine minutes into the contest after Girona failed to clear their lines to send Barca into the break with a one-goal advantage.
Barca have not been at their best without Messi this season, and the club's talisman once again proved his importance to Ernesto Valverde's side with the second goal after the break.
Girona had defender Bernardo Espinosa sent off in the 51st minute for a second booking, and their hopes of getting back in the game were dealt a fatal blow by La Liga's top scorer Messi.
Messi's brilliant finish in the second half, his ninth goal in as many games, came after Nelson Semedo had given the visitors an early lead before Bernardo Espinosa's red card consigned Girona to 39 minutes with 10 men.
The result sees Barca once again sitting five points ahead of nearest rivals Atletico with 17 games of the 2018-19 seasons remaining.
