Barcelona 3-2 Villarreal: Player ratings as Rafinha shines on rare start

Claudio Bravo (7): Can't be faulted for either goal and showed excellent awareness to clip the ball to Messi in a move which ended with Neymar being denied a penalty.

Dani Alves (6): Regularly joined in with attacks but was wayward when shooting from distance on more than one occasion.

Gerard Pique (5): Actually had another very good game in many ways, but he simply cannot afford to make the type of mistake which led to Luciano Vietto's goal in the second half.

Javier Mascherano (6): After a string of good performances alongside Pique in recent weeks he did look troubled by Vietto and Giovani Dos Santos at Camp Nou on Sunday night. He finished the game back in midfield.

Jordi Alba (6): Every run he makes, Lionel Messi finds him. However, he was unable to convert possession of the ball in decent areas into chances.

Sergio Busquets (6): The trademark Sergio Busquets drag-back was on show, although it wasn't a vintage performance from Barcelona's languid midfielder.

Andres Iniesta (6): Played a lovely pass to Luis Suarez in the build up to Barcelona's second equaliser, but a case could perhaps be made that a shift towards attacking power has affected his influence on games.

Rafinha (7): Came in for Ivan Rakitic and will be happy with his performance. His shot was saved in the lead up to Neymar's goal and he was on hand to score the second when Messi's header was blocked.

Lionel Messi (8): Dribbling, passing, goals... another typical Lionel Messi performance. He was involved in all three of Barcelona's goals on the night and his pass for Neymar — when a penalty wasn't given — was sensational.

Luis Suarez (5): Forced Sergio Asenjo into a decent save in the first half and contributed to the second and third goals. Unable to stay onside, though, his first touch continues to be off and he's lost the goalscoring touch he had at Liverpool.

Neymar (7): So fast and skilful that he's always a threat. Was in the right place at the right time to score the equaliser on the stroke of half time. Should have had a penalty as well.

Substitutes:

Jeremy Mathieu (n/a)

Pedro Rodriguez (n/a)

Ivan Rakitic (n/a)