Match Analysis: Real Sociedad 3-1 Barcelona

Barcelona missed the chance to regain top spot in La Liga this evening after losing 3-1 to Real Sociedad in San Sebastian.

The two sides were level at the interval after Lionel Messi had cancelled out an own goal from Alex Song after 32 minutes.

Sociedad regained the lead through Antoine Griezmann in the early stages of the second period, before the Frenchman turned provider for David Zurutuza just before the hour mark.

Here, Sports Mole dissects the 90 minutes of action between the two Spanish rivals.

Match statistics

Sociedad
Shots: 15
On target: 3
Possession: 35%
Corners: 2
Fouls: 13

Barcelona
Shots: 12
On target: 3
Possession: 65%
Corners: 13
Fouls: 15

Was the result fair?

Usually when Barcelona lose, especially in the league, their opponents have to ride their luck for long periods. Well, that was simply not the case this evening. Sociedad were the better side from start to finish on their own patch and perhaps should have won by a more comprehensive scoreline after creating a number of opportunities. It was a tired, leggy performance from the champions, who could be third come the end of the weekend.

Sociedad's performance

From the very first whistle, Sociedad were terrific this evening. They did not give the Catalan outfit a moment to rest in the middle of the park, while the pace of Vela and the invention of Griezmann caused Barcelona all sorts of problems throughout the 90 minutes. The Basque outfit were unlucky to enter the break on terms, but showed their character in the second period to score twice while in control. Griezmann was the star of the show, but youngster Joseba Zaldua and January signing Sergio Canales were also both fantastic.

Barcelona's performance

In truth, Barcelona were well beaten in San Sebastian this evening. They have not won away to Sociedad in seven years and did not come close to ending that run in this match. The selection of Sergio Busquets and Song just did not work in midfield, while their defence was extremely edgy throughout the contest. Even when they fell 3-1 behind, there was no serious response from Gerardo Martino's side, with Sociedad comfortable in the latter stages. Credit must be given to the home side, but Barcelona were extremely disappointing.

Sports Mole's man of the match

Antoine Griezmann: The Frenchman has been one of the stars of the season and continued his stunning form with a man-of-the-match performance this evening. The attacker netted his side's second with a cool finish after 54 minutes, before turning provider for Zurutuza five minutes later. The 22-year-old has scored 19 times in all competitions this campaign.

Biggest gaffe

Some of Barcelona's defending this evening was extremely poor. Not too much could have been done about Sociedad's first, but the second and third were certainly avoidable. It wasn't just the back four that struggled, however, with Busquets and Song failing to mark runners in a clumsy and awkward defensive performance.

Referee performance

David Fernandez had a comfortable 90 minutes in San Sebastian this evening despite the end-to-end nature of the contest. The fact that it was such an open affair is credit to the referee, who was not prepared to stem the flow of proceedings unless absolutely necessary. The Spaniard issued five yellow cards, but there was not too much debate about any of them.

What next?

Sociedad: Sociedad will attempt to strengthen their top-four challenge when they travel to Sevilla next Sunday.

Barcelona: The Catalan outfit continue the defence of their league title at home to Almeria next weekend.