Barcelona vs. Eibar score: Ousmane Demebele goal rescues disappointing draw for Messi-less Barca

Barcelona failed to make the leap into the top four with a 1-1 draw against Eibar in La Liga action on Wednesday at the Camp Nou. Barcelona were coming off a 3-0 win against Valladolid, dominating the game with Messi looking like his former self. The Argentinian captain was kept out of the match against Eibar as a precaution with an injury.

Manager Ronald Koeman rolled his team out in the same back three formation that led the victory against Valladolid, with some minor adjustments to the lineup with Messi unavailable. Antoine Griezmann slotted in for Messi, and Firpo got the start replacing Jordi Alba. Meanwhile, Miralem Pjanić and Frenkie de Jong were tasked with regulating things in the midfield for a second consecutive game. 

It was a poor first half for the Catalonian side who were facing a team in the relegation battle in the visiting Eibar. Barcelona might have had the vast majority of possession but they ended up with little to show for it in front of goal and a failure in finishing in even the most lucrative of opportunities. 

The bad energy started early with a bit of chaos around a penalty that was eventually awarded to Barca in the 7th minute. Martin Braithwaite stepped up to the spot and shanked the ball low and wide of the net to keep things scoreless. 

The Blaugrana would have additional looks from Araujo, and Braithwaite once again but his goal was disallowed after an offside review. Greizmann's struggles continued for Barca as he missed an opportunity to put the team up a goal just ahead of halftime, but his shot trickled just wide of the net through yards of open space. 

Second half shift

A substitution at halftime which brought on Dembele for Dest meant the three back was over as the team shifted into a conventional back four. Dembele's impact was immediate as he would get a solid attempt just minutes after subbing on.

Griezmann would miss yet another chance sliding it just wide of the net, and a bad day at the office would get worse for Barca as Eibar would break the goal scoring first in the 57th minute after Araujo got dispossessed by Kike for Eibar's goal.

To their credit, Barcelona immediately attempted to find the equalizer. Playing down a goal led to more adjustments from the sidelines with Griezmann and Pjanić subbing out and the insertion of Coutinho and Trincao. 

Coutinho would immediately link up with Firpo who played a strong cross into the box for a Dembele on the end of a run to strike the service home.

Dembele's play on the ball would continue to inspire a more or less uninspired Barca side throughout the remainder of the match, but the performances were ultimately lacking for the Catalonaians. The home side would fail to find the go ahead goal, and have to settle for the point.

Looking ahead

The 1-1 draw means Barcelona failed to breakthrough into the top four ahead of the transfer window. The result means they drop down a spot, from fifth to sixth, as the team continues to look for answers and tries to play as a more consistent unit. Barcelona will have a chance to build on their La Liga standing on Sunday, Jan. 3 with a match on the road against Huesca in Estadio El Alcoraz.