Alaves dent Barcelona’s 100-point chase with gritty win over rotated champions

Barcelona’s push to finish their title-winning La Liga season with 100 points is over after a flat 1-0 defeat away to Alaves, with the newly crowned champions punished for an underpowered display at Mendizorrotza.

Just days after wrapping up the title with victory over Real Madrid in El Clasico, Hansi Flick turned heavily to his squad. The changes were understandable, but the drop in tempo, fluency and threat was obvious for long stretches of the night.

Alaves, by contrast, played like a team with everything still on the line. Fighting for survival and roared on by a tense home crowd, they matched Barcelona’s possession-heavy approach with intensity, directness and far more conviction in the key moments.

Barcelona had the ball but not the game

The pattern was established early. Barcelona controlled possession and circulated the ball across the pitch, but their dominance rarely translated into genuine danger.

There was little incision through midfield and not enough movement around the penalty area to unsettle an Alaves side that defended with discipline and clear purpose. Barcelona’s passing often looked neat without being progressive, and too many attacks faded before they became meaningful chances.

Marcus Rashford provided the closest thing to a breakthrough in the first half, getting into a couple of useful positions, but he never truly tested the Alaves goalkeeper. Beyond that, Barcelona’s attacking play felt short on imagination and short on urgency.

For a side already crowned champions, there was perhaps an inevitable emotional dip after the intensity of the title-clinching Clasico. Flick’s rotated lineup did not lack technical quality, but it lacked rhythm.

Alaves played with greater edge

While Barcelona monopolised the ball, Alaves looked more dangerous whenever play became loose, physical or direct. The hosts targeted set pieces, second balls and deliveries into the box, sensing that Barcelona could be rattled more easily than usual.

That approach suited the occasion. Alaves did not need to dominate possession to control the emotional direction of the match. They stayed compact without the ball, broke up play effectively, and attacked the penalty area with far more determination than the champions.

Their reward arrived deep into first-half stoppage time. After a corner caused chaos inside the box, Ibrahim Diabate reacted quickest in the scramble and forced the ball over the line to send Mendizorrotza into celebration.

It was not a polished goal, but it perfectly reflected the contest. Alaves were sharper to the loose moments and more committed in the areas that mattered.

No response from the champions

If the expectation was that Barcelona would raise their level after the break, that response never really came.

The second half followed a familiar script. Barcelona kept the ball, Alaves kept their shape, and clear openings remained scarce. The game became fragmented, with fouls, bookings and repeated stoppages draining any rhythm from the visitors’ attacking play.

Barcelona were unable to accelerate the game or create the kind of one-v-one situations that might have stretched Alaves’ back line. Too often, moves ended with harmless circulation in front of a settled defensive block.

That will frustrate Flick more than the result itself. Losing after the title has been secured is manageable. Producing so little in the final third is the more revealing issue, even if the context of rotation matters.

A big result at the bottom of the table

For Alaves, this was far more than a famous home win over the champions. It was a result with real weight in the relegation battle.

Matches at this stage of the season are often defined less by aesthetics than by nerve, and Alaves handled the pressure better. They played with a clear understanding of what the night required.

Three points earned through defensive concentration and competitive edge can shift the mood of a survival run-in. Against elite opponents, that kind of victory can also reinforce belief inside the squad and in the stands.

One bright note for Barcelona

There were few positives for Barcelona, but another encouraging display from 21-year-old centre-back Alvaro Cortes stood out.

In a game that often lacked structure around him, the young defender again showed composure and suggested he can be trusted in senior minutes. On a night where several fringe players struggled to impose themselves, that individual note will have been worth tracking.

Still, the broader takeaway is simple. Barcelona looked like a team coming down from the high of clinching the title, while Alaves looked like a team determined to seize a lifeline.

What the result means

Barcelona remain champions, and this defeat changes nothing about the success of their league campaign. But their chance to reach the symbolic 100-point mark is gone, and the performance served as a reminder that squad rotation can blunt even the strongest sides when the collective sharpness drops.

For Alaves, the meaning is much more immediate. This was a deserved win built on urgency, resilience and taking the one decisive moment that came their way.

In the end, that was the difference between a champion playing with freedom and a struggling side playing with need. The team with more at stake played like it.