Barcelona Produces First Primera Liga Stunner

Barcelona did not have a very successful start of the season. Despite clinching the Spanish SuperCup against city rivals Espanyol, the Catalan side failed to win the European SuperCup. And not only that, but they made a foul out of themselves on Friday night, losing 3-0 to Seville.

Once the "Extraterrestrial" dream was crushed, Barcelona seemed unbeatable no more. So everybody was waiting to get a piece of them along the process. The first one was Celta Vigo, yesterday night. Playing their Spanish League opener one day later than scheduled - because of the European SuperCup - Barcelona was eager to wipe off that last impression from the Seville game.

On the other hand, Celta was looking to take advantage of Barca's questionable form and begin their Primera Liga with a success. And they seemed to be right on track, when scoring the opener, in the 42nd minute. Fernando Baiano beat Valdes and the second half was looking more interesting already.

Still, Frank Rijkaard was the one to smile after the half-time, with Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi making it 2-1 for the visitors in only 5 minutes (55th and 60th minute). Celta recovered well from the breakdown and scored the equalizer only 5 minutes later, when Gustavo Lopez netted a poor handled free-kick by the Barcelona defense.

The 87th minute was crucial for Celta, since the home side was reduced to 10 men. Substitute Gudjohnsen was brought down by defender Iriney, and the referee had no choice but to book him with a 2nd yellow card. One minute later, a perfect cross by Deco and the same Gudjohnsen made the Catalan crown celebrate his perfect goal. The final score, 3-2, made Barcelona gain 2 points ahead rivals Real Madrid after only one game in the 2006/07 Primera Liga season.