Memphis knocks down the resistance of Edgar Badia in the volcanic triumph of Barcelona in Elche

Penalties must be thrown without shame.

With both impudence and bravado.

That damn white hole has devoured so many footballers that it is better not to hesitate and unleash a whipping.

It was what

did five minutes from the end to grant Barcelona its fourth consecutive win, something that had not happened for a year.

Memphis, associated with a

in search of his definitive liberation, knew how to knock down the gigantic

when the afternoon was already over.

A drama fueled by the referee

, the only protagonist of the decline.

The Martínez Valero stadium went into convulsion when he saw how the referee signaled the decisive penalty after noticing on the VAR monitor how

swept the ball with his arm in the middle of the dispute with Memphis.

Elche claimed the same fate for Jordi Alba or Sergio Busquets.

And the twilight came with

releasing as many mitts as answers, and

arguing loudly with

on the band.

Too much tension for a duel that should be between the wars.

The reasons for such suffering had to be found in what happened in the first half.

is a footballer who performs better when nobody expects anything from him.

If he breaks in from the substitution, that extremist and agonizing football becomes a very useful asset in games that tend to break.

But that effect tends to disappear when he has to appear in the starting eleven and take responsibility against managed defenses.

's changes of orientation

and abandoned the lime as many times as he could in search of spaces that only he could see.

But every time he had to make an important decision he tore apart any good intentions.

It does not change.

The problem that Barcelona found is that Xavi had planned a game in which Dembélé, and not

, was a key player behind

.

And it ended up being just the opposite, turning the Elche lane into a torment on the right bank of Barcelona.

The advances of the Colombian, who owes his name to

also exposed the serious problems that

finds himself in when there is no one to help him.

Elche's goal came when the first act was already fainting.

Precisely because of that hole in the side, although it all started from an unfortunate clearance to the back by

.

The ball was grabbed by

, who did not have too many problems to put together a cross shot in the face of little opposition from Dani Alves, who did not arrive in time to attack the midfielder.

Barcelona thus went into the break at a disadvantage.

And with the feeling that, no matter how much Edgar Badia saved two duels in the sun against Dembélé and

, little revenue had been able to get the static attack from him.

The left flank of the Barça offensive front, in fact, did not exist.

On the Ferran Torres bench after nine consecutive starts, it was

's turn to start from the far left.

A position that greatly limits the expansive game of the youth squad, who ended up disoriented and not knowing which tiles he had to step on for someone to pass him the ball.

The six stops of Badia

Even so, this Barcelona of Xavi Hernández is so dangerous in the open field that he generated clear chances every time Elche dared to come out of his lair.

Although, this time, the azulgrana penalized their poor aim.

An evil that seemed solved.

, after weeks in ecstasy, lost his finesse.

Dembélé never had it, who thought that since Edgar Badia was not too tall, he could easily overcome him with a Vaseline.

The Frenchman caressed the ball with his crooked boot, which made it easier for the goalkeeper to reject the ball.

Frenkie's seas then opened up on the second play, but his shot with the inside was so timid that

He was able to avoid the goal under the sticks.

The midfielder was not redeemed in another one-on-one that Badia saved with more ease than the occasion deserved.

Xavi tried to resolve the traps that Francisco so wisely arranged with logical decisions.

Gavi took over from Ferran Torres.

And the Valencian, who had been cursing his bad leg in the auction, finally let his hair down.

He was not afraid to finish everything that went through his boots and associated himself as many times as he could with

, a step prior to the equalizing goal.

Ferran Torres, a winger who goes out of his way to score, was on the lookout to pick up Alba's initial shot to be the one to crown.

The former City footballer defined, this time yes, with the grace of the old battering rams.

Not satisfied with this, Ferran Torres, a devil in every break unchecked, piled up options in the area.

Although he would find himself with the firm opposition of Edgar Badia, who snatched two goals from him on goal.

The Elche goalkeeper added up to six stops, whom Ter Stegen tried to keep up by denying

.

Although Badia could do nothing before the late rush of Memphis, who celebrated the penalty goal that resolved the duel with the ecstasy of those who fight to recover their lost status.

Just the same fight in which this Barça is involved.

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Know more

• FC Barcelona

• Barcelona

• Xavi Hernandez

Europa LeagueBarcelona stands up in Europe

Europa LeagueXavi, between confidence and caution: "There are many options to do something great, but we have to be humble"

LaLigaXavi: "We needed a victory against a great"

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