Lionel Messi said Barcelona were back to their best following a mid-season slump after scoring a hat-trick in a rousing 4-2 win at Sevilla, while Ernesto Valverde poured cold water over Real Madrid's complaints over scheduling ahead of this week's clasico double-header.
Barca had won only one of five games in February as they kicked off at the Sanchez Pizjuan on Saturday but after another landmark day for Messi, who scored the 50th hat-trick of his career, the Argentine pledged his side would now go all out for a treble of La Liga, Copa del Rey and Uefa Champions League trophies.
Having been held to a goalless draw at Lyon in their Champions League last-16 first leg on Tuesday, Barca looked set for another disappointing result when Jesus Navas gave Sevilla the lead.
Yet Messi responded with a stunning volley and although Gabriel Mercado put Sevilla in front again before half time, Barca's captain again hauled his team back into the game quite brilliantly.
His thumping strike from just inside the area saw Barca equalise midway through the second half before he put them ahead with an ice-cool dinked finish in the 85th minute and then laid on the pass for Luis Suarez to seal all three points.
"Today, we were ourselves again and we produced a great performance," Messi told reporters.
"We went through a spell where, to be honest, we did not play our best football so that made it much harder for us to score.
"You have different moments over a season, and we can't always play at the highest level. But when we manage to get the play to flow, things always happen for us."
Barca's inconsistent results have not harmed their bid to successfully defend the La Liga title and the thrilling win extended their lead at the top of the table to 10 points over nearest challengers Atletico Madrid.
The Spanish champions now face back-to-back trips to arch rivals Real Madrid, with a Copa del Rey semi-final second leg on Wednesday followed by a league visit back at the Bernabeu next Saturday.
"Now we have some very difficult games coming up and everything will get harder as the season draws to a close," Messi added.
"We won't give up in any competition. We are one step from reaching the cup final. That game is going to be very tough because it's against Madrid, in their stadium.
"But we will go out to win and believe we can. Then we will focus on the league game. We're going to try and win everything."
Santiago Solari had described as "curious" Barcelona having an extra day's rest before next week's Copa del Rey clash.
"We find it funny," Solari said at a press conference on Saturday ahead of Real's match away to Levante on Sunday. "It's curious. But playing in different conditions, it entertains us a lot and we see it as a challenge."
Madrid were also given one day fewer before the first leg earlier this month, which ended in a 1-1 draw at Camp Nou, but had an extra day ahead of the La Liga match before travelling to Barcelona in October, when Barca ran out 5-1 winners.
Barca manager Valverde shrugged off his Madrid counterparts complaints.
"Anyone can complain about the schedule, Sevilla too," said Valverde after Saturday's 4-2 win at Sevilla.
"Really, that sort of thing happens to Sevilla, Betis, Real, to us, to all the teams. If the match date falls like that, it's like that."
Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
Usain Bolt's World Championships record
2007 Osaka
200m Silver
4x100m relay Silver
2009 Berlin
100m Gold
200m Gold
4x100m relay Gold
2011 Daegu
100m Disqualified in final for false start
200m Gold
4x100m relay Gold
2013 Moscow
100m Gold
200m Gold
4x100m relay Gold
2015 Beijing
100m Gold
200m Gold
4x100m relay Gold
THE BIO
Favourite author - Paulo Coelho
Favourite holiday destination - Cuba
New York Times or Jordan Times? NYT is a school and JT was my practice field
Role model - My Grandfather
Dream interviewee - Che Guevara
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
Generation Start-up: Awok company profile
Started: 2013
Founder: Ulugbek Yuldashev
Sector: e-commerce
Size: 600 plus
Stage: still in talks with VCs
Principal Investors: self-financed by founder
What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
AndhaDhun
Director: Sriram Raghavan
Producer: Matchbox Pictures, Viacom18
Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Tabu, Radhika Apte, Anil Dhawan
Rating: 3.5/5
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
The biog
From: Ras Al Khaimah
Age: 50
Profession: Electronic engineer, worked with Etisalat for the past 20 years
Hobbies: 'Anything that involves exploration, hunting, fishing, mountaineering, the sea, hiking, scuba diving, and adventure sports'
Favourite quote: 'Life is so simple, enjoy it'
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Basquiat in Abu Dhabi
One of Basquiat’s paintings, the vibrant Cabra (1981–82), now hangs in Louvre Abu Dhabi temporarily, on loan from the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
The latter museum is not open physically, but has assembled a collection and puts together a series of events called Talking Art, such as this discussion, moderated by writer Chaedria LaBouvier.
It's something of a Basquiat season in Abu Dhabi at the moment. Last week, The Radiant Child, a documentary on Basquiat was shown at Manarat Al Saadiyat, and tonight (April 18) the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi is throwing the re-creation of a party tonight, of the legendary Canal Zone party thrown in 1979, which epitomised the collaborative scene of the time. It was at Canal Zone that Basquiat met prominent members of the art world and moved from unknown graffiti artist into someone in the spotlight.
“We’ve invited local resident arists, we’ll have spray cans at the ready,” says curator Maisa Al Qassemi of the Guggenheim Abu Dhabi.
Guggenheim Abu Dhabi's Canal Zone Remix is at Manarat Al Saadiyat, Thursday April 18, from 8pm. Free entry to all. Basquiat's Cabra is on view at Louvre Abu Dhabi until October
