While Real Madrid defeated Málaga 2–0 at home with a backup lineup, Barcelona also won at home, beating newly promoted Las Palmas 2–1 thanks to Cristiano Ronaldo's brace.
Strictly speaking, this result was not satisfactory, especially at Camp Nou. But after their recent 4–1 away humiliation by Celta Vigo, being able to escape their predicament with a victory was still something worth acknowledging.
What was truly regrettable was that Barcelona's biggest star, Messi, was injured and substituted after only eight minutes.
Three minutes into the match, Messi fell while accelerating toward goal with the ball on the right side of the penalty area. He received treatment from the team doctor, but the incident did not attract much attention, and he stayed on the pitch to continue playing.
Five minutes later, Messi went down and stayed there. Everyone realized how serious the problem was.
Messi immediately went to the hospital for an examination. The diagnosis was an injury to the medial collateral ligament of his left knee, causing severe pain and swelling on both the inner and outer sides of the knee joint. He was expected to be out for at least two months.
For Barcelona, who were already in poor form, this was undoubtedly a disastrous blow on top of their existing troubles. It once again sparked questions from the media and fans about Barcelona's management, because the club's squad depth was simply too thin.
Even Barcelona's mouthpiece, Mundo Deportivo, raised questions after the match, wondering whether the club's superstar strategy had gone wrong.
"When Real Madrid can rest stars like Yang Yang and Hazard with a backup lineup and still beat Málaga 2–0 at home, Barcelona have made Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, and the other stars play every match in full. Now a serious injury has occurred. This is