Player Ratings: Sporting Gijon 0-1 Barcelona

Lionel Messi y Pedro celebran con el Barcelona frente al Sporting de Gijón en la Liga BBVA (Getty Images)

Sporting Gijon

Juan Pablo - 8: An excellent performance, the man mainly responsible for keeping the scoreline respectable.

Alberto Lora - 5: Got forward on occasion, but was highly frustrated by Pedro down the left flank.

Alberto Botia - 5: Not the best performance against his former club, although he did deal with Ibrahimovic fairly well.

Gregory - 6: Looked more assured than his defensive partner, and made one crucial challenge on the line.

Roberto Canella - 5: Showed why he is so highly rated at times going forward, but just couldn't handle Messi.

Cristian Portilla - 4: An anonymous performance, failed to nullify Barca's midfield.

Alberto Rivera - 5: Hustled and bustled as always, but failed to provide much attacking impetus.
Luis Moran - 4: Barely made an impact on the game.

Miguel De Las Cuevas - 5: Found himself in some decent positions, but his final ball was often lacking.

Carmelo - 4: An ineffective performance, got no joy on the wing.

Mate Bilic - 4: Had a couple of decent chances which he should have done better with.

Substitutes

Diego Castro - 6: Looked quite lively after coming on, but didn't have enough time to make a real impact.

David Barral - N/A

Sergio Matabuena - N/A

Barcelona

Victor Valdes - 7: Had very little to do, but didn't make any mistakes.

Carles Puyol - 7: Demonstrated his attacking skills down the flanks again, and was solid in defence.

Gerard Pique - 7: Another commanding performance in the centre of defence.

Rafael Marquez - 6: A solid performance, with none of the mishaps that have crept into his game of late.

Eric Abidal - 7: Another impressive performance, although he did not get forward much.

Sergio Busquets - 6: Did his job well, without contributing anything spectacular.

Xavi - 7: A typical performance, never lost the ball and created some great opportunities.

Andres Iniesta - 8: A constant threat, dribbling past players and finding team-mates at will.

Pedro - 8: Proved his undeniable instinct for goals once again with a very well taken effort, and was lively throughout.

Lionel Messi - 7: Some mesmerizing runs and passes, but his finishing was ordinary.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic - 5: A disappointing performance, had plenty of opportunities but never looked like taking them.

Substitutes

Bojan - N/A