Inspired Dembele shows leadership in Barcelona's victory

While Gerard Pique and Carles Alena got the goals for Barcelona it was Ousmane Dembele that was the leader and most inspired player for the Catalan side.

The often questioned Dembele received wide applause from the Camp Nou crowd with the first ovation coming after seven minutes after beating Pedraza five times before crossing the ball.

It was an indication of his quality, speed and rhythm which can be used by Barcelona if he is disciplined and prepared to work hard.

At the same time his shooting was timid but he provided the assist for Pique to score and linked up well throughout the match.

Villarreal's defenders struggled with both centre-halves Alvaro Gonzalez and Victor Ruiz both booked within 25 minutes for fouls on Lionel Messi and they had played deeply with five in the rearguard.

The numbers and pressure from the Villarreal defence meant that Messi didn't have more impact and for the first time this season when he has started in the league he didn't score. It was not a night to remember for the Argentine who failed to show his magic.

Plenty has been said about Samu Chukwueze this season for Villarreal and he showed moments of quality but he also failed to shine. He looked relaxed but was unable to see much of the ball with Lenglet keeping close to him.

Pique and Gerard Moreno have played against each other many times in previous Barcelona derbies with the latter at Espanyol and their previous altercations were not forgotten as they fought for each ball and had several arguments.

The main question at the end though was about Coutinho as he had another quiet game on the back of that against PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League.