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Barcelona center-back Clement Lenglet appeared distraught on Sunday after conceding a late penalty that gifted Cadiz a 1-1 draw at the Camp Nou in La Liga.
Lionel Messi’s first-half goal had Barca on course for an important victory that would have cut the gap to league leaders Atletico Madrid to six points. However, Alex Fernandez converted an 89th-minute spot-kick after Lenglet had fouled Rubén Sobrino to ensure the points were shared.
Diario Sport’s Toni Juanmarti showed Lenglet in tears on the way home from the stadium in his car.
Lenglet se marchó a casa prácticamente llorando. Consciente de que su error penalizó y mucho al equipo #fcblive
Barca fans also spotted Lenglet driving away from the game and covering his face.
Un gran profesional no merece pasar por este bloqueo mental que le impide trabajar bien. Desde el primer día diste ejemplo. Nunca te has quejado de nada y siempre lo has hecho con la mejor de las intenciones.
Ánimo @clement_lenglet 😢
It’s the third penalty that Lenglet has conceded this season for Barcelona. He also gave away a spot-kick after a shirt pull on Sergio Ramos against Real Madrid and was penalized for a handball in the 3-0 defeat to Juventus in the Champions League.
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Koeman Talks Barca Draw
Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman couldn’t hide his disappointment after Sunday’s draw but did not want to point the finger of blame at individual players. The Dutchman admitted his team should have won and missed a big chance to cut the gap to Atletico, as reported by Marca.
It’s disappointing, these kind of games have to be won and we didn’t do it. It’s a big opportunity lost after the Atletico Madrid defeat. It’s a big disappointment.
I’m very disappointed, more so than last Tuesday. We couldn’t let the two points slip away. We are disappointed. I don’t like to blame the players individually. We weren’t up to the task in attack, and we have to defend differently. In terms of quality, we should have won.
Barca return to training on Monday to begin to prepare for Wednesday’s visit from Elche in La Liga. Fran Escribá’s side head into the match in the relegation zone but ended a run of seven games without a win by beating Eibar 1-0 on Saturday.
Koeman To Make Changes?
Koeman kept faith with the same starting XI that lost 4-1 to Paris Saint-Germain against Cadiz but must surely be tempted to make changes after another disappointing result.
It would be no surprise to see Lenglet dropped to the bench after his latest mistake, and Koeman does have options at center-back. Gerard Pique and Samuel Umtiti are both fit and available, while Oscar Mingueza could also get the nod.
Ronald Araujo is expected back from an ankle injury this week, but it’s not clear yet if the Uruguay international will be passed fit in time for Wednesday’s match.
Koeman may also be tempted to make changes further forward with Barcelona scoring just once against Cadiz despite having 21 shots on goal during the 90 minutes.
Journalist Albert Roge has reported that Koeman also wants 18-year-old midfielder Ilaix Moriba available to play against Elche. The teenager was handed his first-team debut earlier this season and was on target in a 6-0 win for Barcelona B against L’Hospitalet on Sunday.
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