Barcelona 2-0 Valencia: Player ratings as Luis Enrique's men struggle

Barcelona 2-0 Valencia: Player ratings as Luis Enrique's men struggle

Claudio Bravo 8 - The Chilean goalkeeper saved Dani Parejo's penalty to keep Barcelona ahead, and made some other fine stops as Valencia turned the heat up. Has made amends after his error against Sevilla.

Dani Alves 6 - Started after recovering from injury and put in a decent shift. Lacked accuracy with his final ball when going forward, but always provided his team-mates an option. 

Gerard Pique 6 - Conceded a penalty which seemed a little soft, when he challenged Rodrigo from behind. After that appeared a little shaken, but had recovered his composure by the end. 

Jeremy Mathieu 7 - Moved to left-back in the second half after Ivan Rakitic came on for Adriano and was an impressive presence. Stormed up the left more than a few times and was a good outlet. 

Adriano 5 - Sofiane Feghouli gave him a truly torrid time, with the Brazilian unable to handle the Valencia winger. Many of Los Che's attacks passed him by. At the other end, fired well over on one of his rare forays forward - was replaced at half-time.

Javier Mascherano 6 - Could not stem the tide of Valencia attacks in the first half; perhaps he was tired after playing in Paris. Improved after the break. 

Sergio Busquets 7 - Was not quite part of a double pivot, given he played to the right of Mascherano with Xavi on the left. Helped create the first goal, with a through-ball for Messi. 

Xavi Hernandez 6 - Started in place of the injured Andres Iniesta, as Enrique looked to get more control. After the interval he found his rhythm a little more. Huge applause for the veteran when he was substituted.

Lionel Messi 9 - Scored his 400th goal at the end, with the final kick of the game, but this was the least of the forward's contributions. Worked his heart out, fighting for the team in a way he doesn't always. 

Luis Suarez 8 - Went off for Pedro in the second half but that seemed to be for an injury, as he iced his leg afterwards. The striker finished with a toe poke early on, and never stopped battling after that.

Neymar 6 - The Brazilian didn't bring his A game to this battle, taking one too many touches on occasion and relinquising possession.

SUBS

Ivan Rakitic 7 - Added intensity to Barcelona's play and helped them take the game by the scruff of the neck in the second half. 

Pedro 6 - Rarely got into the game.

Sergi Roberto N/A