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Fati followed up his double in a 4-0 win at Villarreal on Sunday by scoring the first goal on Thursday before Barça defender Clement Lenglet was harshly sent off for a second bookable infraction late in the first half.
Celta were unable to capitalize on their numerical advantage and Lucas Olaza’s own goal, created by the fickle Messi, gave Ronald Koeman’s side a break.
Messi also had a goal disallowed for offside when he seemed to be level, but the Blaugrana were not denied another three points due to the wind and rain and Sergi Roberto added the final flourish in injury time by beating Celta for the first time since 2015.
Barça arrogantly hit the ball after the Villarreal demolition and took the lead in the 11th minute when Fati received a pass from Philippe Coutinho for the first time and screwed up with the outside of his right foot.
Lenglet was booked for turning over Gabri Veiga, who Neto had rejected a shot, and Barça sighed in relief when Gerard Piqué’s red card for a professional foul on Denis Suárez was annulled with the midfielder offside.
However, Piqué’s teammate, Lenglet, received his marching orders three minutes before the break, when Carlos del Cerro Grande judged him harshly for having prevented former Barça player Suárez for a second yellow.
Koeman reacted by substituting Antoine Griezmann for Ronald Araujo, but the Blaugrana doubled their lead five minutes after the break, thanks in large part to Messi.
The captain walked away from two challenges and Olaza could only convert a center with the Argentine forward’s right foot into his own net as the rain continued to fall.
Messi appeared to have added a third, but was thrown offside when he spun on the rebound after Coutinho hit the post and Piqué failed to convert a dangerous cross from his outstanding patron.
Miguel Baeza watched as his deflected effort hit the crossbar on a frustrating night for Celta, as Barça showed great spirit and quality to clinch two wins out of two in LaLiga, with Roberto putting the icing on the cake by punching a third right at the end. .
What does that mean? Crisis, what crisis?
There had been talk of a crisis at Barça after Messi asked to leave in August, before agreeing to stay for the 2020-21 season. But Messi’s commitment was there to be seen once again, as he produced another brilliant performance, which deserved at least one goal.
He showed predatory instincts to pounce when Coutinho was repulsed by the woodwork, only to see the flag above, and saw his shot saved before Roberto fired with time nearly up. Messi made 60 successful passes, with an accuracy of 92.3 percent, and also put Celta under pressure with six centers.
Coutinho pulls the strings
Brazilian playmaker Coutinho was also a constant threat to Celta, causing all sorts of problems as he drifted into space and pulled the strings.
The former Liverpool player was also expected to leave the club, having returned from a loan stint with Bayern Munich, but with this evidence he could be a point man.
His strong pass gave Fati a chance to open the scoring and Coutinho was one step away from scoring himself when his right hand shot up the post.
Misery for Lenglet and Griezmann
Lenglet was sent off for the fourth time in all competitions since signing for the Catalan giants, more than any other player since the 2018-19 season.
Having signed right-back Sergino Dest from Ajax earlier in the day, Koeman will surely now be eager to bring in another center-back, with Eric Garcia still a target.
Lenglet’s early departure also brought Griezmann’s involvement to an early end, as the French striker has struggled to make the kind of impact Messi, Coutinho and Fati had.
Whats Next?
Barça return to Camp Nou for a delicious clash with Sevilla on Sunday, while Celta visit Osasuna
