Barcelona were forced to twice come from behind against Lechia Gdansk in a pre-season friendly this evening, eventually sharing the spoils with a 2-2 draw.
The hosts took the lead in the 15th minute when captain Jaroslaw Bieniuk rose highest from a corner to power his header home.
Barcelona responded 10 minutes later as Sergi Roberto made a late run into the box to tap in Martin Montoya's low cross.
Gdansk regained the lead just five minutes into the second half when Piotr Grzelczak capitalised on a defensive error from Montoya before smashing the ball past Oier Olazabal from a tight angle.
They were only ahead for a further six minutes, however, as Lionel Messi chipped the ball over the keeper having been found by Alexis Sanchez.
You can read how an entertaining friendly unfolded with Sports Mole's live play-by-play coverage below.
Good evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for tonight's pre-season clash between Lechia Gdansk and Barcelona. Let's get straight down to business.
We will start by looking at our hosts tonight, and it is no exaggeration to say that this is one of the biggest matches in the club's history, despite it only being a friendly. Gdansk were only promoted into the top flight of Polish football in 2008 and, since then, have failed to finish any higher than eighth in the 16-team league.
In truth, the tag of a 'pre-season match' is slightly misleading as far as Gdansk are concerned. They have already begun their regular season in Poland, currently sitting in mid-table having drawn their opening two matches. First up was a 2-2 draw against Podbeskidzie before a 1-1 draw away to Ruch Chorzow.
It is safe to say, then, that Lionel Messi and company are going to be a cut above the players that the Gdansk fans are used to seeing. Having said that, the club has experienced some success in the domestic cup recently, reaching the semi-finals two years in a row.
They also have a skilled coach in the dugout in the shape of Michal Probierz. He is a former Polish Coach of the Year and getting anywhere near to a result tonight would be another major feather in his cap.
Speaking of coaches, Barcelona will once again be without their new boss on the sidelines today. Gerardo Martino has not travelled to Poland, so Jordi Roura will once again take charge of the Spanish champions.
This match was originally scheduled to be Barcelona's first of their pre-season campaign, but the unfortunate circumstances that led to Tito Vilanova's resignation forced the match to be rearranged for today. Instead of being their first warm-up match, then, Barcelona come into today's encounter having already played twice.
The first was a baptism of fire as a largely-second string Barcelona side took on a strong Bayern Munich outfit, and the Spanish side did well to keep the score down to 2-0. They looked more like the Barca we've grown to know in their last match, annihilating Valerenga 7-0.
Gdansk could well be facing a similar fate here today, especially with the news that blockbuster summer-signing Neymar could make his debut. Barca's other Confederations Cup stars are not expected to play any part, however, so the likes of Xavi, Iniesta, Fabregas and Alves may have to wait until Friday's match against Santos for their return to action.
One man who is expected to start once again is Lionel Messi. The Argentine superstar was instrumental in Barca's 7-0 win in their last outing, and he is set to start for the third pre-season game in a row. He 'only' has one goal to his name from the previous two matches, but I certainly wouldn't bet against him adding to that tally significantly tonight.
TEAM NEWS: Barcelona's team news is now in, and the name everyone is looking for is conspicuous by its absence. Neymar does not make his full debut for the club, with Tello once again starting alongside Alexis Sanchez and Messi up front. Full team news on its way.
BARCELONA STARTING XI: Pinto; Montoya, Sergi Gómez, Bartra, Adriano; Song, Dos Santos, Sergi Roberto; Alexis, Messi, Tello
Again, it is a relatively weak team fielded by Barca due to the absence of Valdes, Iniesta, Xavi, Fabregas, Alves and others recovering from the Confederations Cup. Of those chosen to start tonight's match, I wouldn't be surprised if only Messi and perhaps Alexis Sanchez were to start the opening game of the competitive season.
PREDICTION: Right, we're five minutes from kickoff in Poland, which means that it is time I made a prediction. I'm not going to shock anyone by backing Barcelona to comfortably win this match. They may not have their strongest team out but there will still be goals tonight. I'm going to go for a 6-0 win to the visitors.
Hopefully we will get a chance to see Messi in full flow tonight as well. The Argentinian suffered an injury at the end of last season, putting a dampener on what was another sensational campaign up until that point. He is still, for my money, comfortably the best in the world and, quite possibly, the best of all time.
The players are lined up and we're almost ready to go here. There is a good attendance for a pre-season, and it is a fine stadium given the relatively small size of the club.
Messi, who captains the side tonight, has a beaming smile on his face as he shakes the hands of the opposition and the officials. Messi in a good mood spells danger for Gdansk!
KICKOFF: We're finally underway here and Barcelona get us started, immediately knocking the ball about in their own inimitable style.
Barcelona win a corner in the opening stages as Messi flicked the ball to Alexis with the outside of his foot. The Chilean winger threw in a few stepovers as he tried to take his man on, but it was well defended.
The first hint of an opening for Barcelona ends in unfortunate circumstances. Messi again played Alexis through, and the winger has a clear shot on goal if he fancies it. Instead, he tries to feed it back to Messi, but the Argentinian has slipped and Gdansk are able to clear the danger.
This is going to be a long night for Gdansk you feel. They have just had a speculative effort on the half volley from range, and that may well be what they are limited to all match. Barcelona are dominating possession, as expected, right now.
CHANCE! Big chance for Alexis to break the deadlock early on. A corner finds the winger inexplicably unmarked on the edge of the six yard box. He seems as surprised as everyone at the time and space he has and tries an unorthodox back heel in mid air, and the ball bounces into the ground and over the bar.
GDANSK SUB: Very early change from Gdansk here, presumably for an injury. Zyska and Pietrowski make the switch for the hosts.
Half chance for Gdansk as Grzelczak picks up the ball on the left side of the area. He has plenty of space to control the ball and pick his spot, but his first touch is woeful and Montoya is able to get across and force a poor shot.
Messi pings a sublime pass into the feet of Tello, but the winger has just drifted into an offside position. That was a close call, but the linesman got it right. Brilliant vision from Messi, though.
Adriano receives the ball around 25 yards from goal and immediately looks for the bottom corner. He drags his low shot quite a way wide, however.
GOAL! Lechia Gdansk 1-0 Barcelona (Jaroslaw Bieniuk)
Gdansk take a shock lead against the might of Barcelona! It is a fine goal as well. Bartra is initially to blame having over-hit a backpass out for a corner, but from then it is fine play by Bieniuk. The Gdansk skipper rose majestically between two defenders to power a header past the despairing dive of Pinto. Very good header and he will remember that moment for the rest of his life.
CHANCE! Gdansk are almost architects of their own downfall as they try to play the ball out from defence, much like their more illustrious opponents are renowned for. It doesn't work, however, and the ball falls to Messi inside the box. The Argentine tries to curl it round the keeper from a tight angle, but Bak gets down well to save.
Gdansk are actually looking quite dangerous in attack. They come forward again and it takes a retreating Sergi Roberto to cut out a dangerous low cross into the box.
Brilliant from Messi as he skips past one challenge before advancing into the box, cruising past another tackle and sending a low cross towards Alexis. Bieniuk is there to bundle the ball back to the keeper, though.
BARCELONA SUB: Barca also make an early change, and it is an interesting one. Tello doesn't look injured and seems confused when he sees the assistant raise his number on the board. There is no mistake, however, and Tello is hauled of as Joan replaces him.
The Gdansk manager is screaming at his players from the touchline, but I'm not sure why - he must be delighted with how his team is doing at the moment!
GOAL! Lechia Gdansk 1-1 Barcelona (Sergi Roberto)
Perhaps I spoke too soon! Alexis and Montoya link up down the right flank, allowing the latter to play a low ball across the face of goal. Sergi Roberto, who has travelled from box to box tirelessly so far, is on hand to convert the simplest of tap-ins and level the sides.
Montoya reaches the byline on that right side again, but this time there is no-one on hand to apply the finish. The full-back put another fine low cross into the box and all it needed was a touch, but no-one was there.
GDANSK SUB: I think the Gdansk manager is just giving as many of his players the opportunity to play in this match. He makes his second change of the night already, bringing on Patryk Tuszynski for Buzala.
Barcelona are applying heavy pressure at the moment but, it must be said, Gdansk are coping with it well. The visitors have tried a number of clever balls into the box, and they are being matched by equally clever runs from the likes of Messi, but the defence have made some important interceptions.
Barcelona do look thin at the back whenever Gdansk come forward, and they are almost caught out again here. Tuszynski is inches away from connecting with a low cross into the box, and it would have been a very good chance had he made contact.
Some of Barca's marking from set pieces has left a lot to be desired as well. Madera is the latest to be left unmarked in the box, but he can't keep his header down. Pinto immediately turns to scream at his defence, and he has a point.
CHANCE! Dos Santos has a good chance to give Barcelona the lead, but he just lacks a bit of composure at the vital moment. Adriano's cross into the box found its way to the Mexican after Alexis drew two defenders away with a smart run, but Dos Santos was stretching for the ball and could only skew it wide.
Pinto has a slight heart-in-mouth moment as he fumbles a low cross into the box. Gdansk can't take advantage, however, and Pinto eventually collects the ball at the second attempt.
We're coming to the end of the first half now and it has by no means been one way traffic as I expected. Gdansk have looked impressive going forward and have their defence have also managed to keep the likes of Messi and Alexis quiet.
Half chance for Alexis as he gets his foot to a low cross, but the ball was behind him and he looked as if he was trying to control it rather than shoot. Whatever he was trying to do, the ball runs tamely into the arms of Bak.
There will be one minute of added time at the end of this first half.
Barca have a free kick right on the edge of the box after Alexis was brought down. This is a very dangerous position, particularly with Lionel Messi on the pitch...
SAVE! It is a decent effort from Messi as he gets it over the wall and back down, but it is a nice height for Bak, who punches it clear with a diving save.
HALF TIME: Lechia Gdansk 1-1 Barcelona
That was a very interesting half of football. I expected Barcelona to have it all their own way and, for the first few minutes, it looked as if that was going to be the case. Gdansk soon found their feet, however, and they have looked very dangerous at times. They fully deserve to be level at the break.
It was the home side who broke the deadlock through a towering header from Jaroslaw Bieniuk before Sergi Roberto levelled the sides 10 minutes later with a simple tap in. Barcelona have probably edged it as far as chances created, but Gdansk have given a very good account of themselves so far.
I have been very impressed by the Polish side, both in attack and defence. They are being helped by some poor defending on Barcelona's part for sure, but they are still looking dangerous whenever they come forward against some top class opposition. They have had a couple of lapses in defence but, on the whole, have been very good. Messi has shown glimpses of what we know he can do but has been kept quiet by his usual standards.
Despite Gdansk's performance in that first half, I still fully expect Barcelona to win this one. I think that they will threaten a lot more after the break and could score a few more. I have already had to scrap my initial prediction of 6-0 to Barca, but if I had to make one now I'd go for 4-1 to the visitors.
It will be interesting to see how much longer Messi will play in this match. I get the feeling that he will want to stay out there in order to play a bigger part, but Jordi Roura will be wary of any potential injuries to his star player. Should he choose to take him off - be it at half time or later in the second half - he has the perfect replacement in Neymar on the bench. The Brazilian will surely make his debut at some point tonight.
Of course, the way this match is going Roura may choose to bring Neymar on for someone like Tello, giving the Brazilian a chance to play alongside Lionel Messi for the first time. That would be very interesting to see and I personally hope it happens. The more we see players of such quality on the same pitch the better!
The players are filtering back on to the field, and Messi is still out there. Neymar is also still on the bench, so we will have to wait to see the new Barcelona man.
BARCA SUB: One sub that Barcelona do make is between the sticks as Oier Olazabal replaces Pinto.
KICKOFF: Gdansk get us back underway here, can they hold on to record a famous result?
The cameras keep showing a shot of Neymar asking to be brought on. He is desperate for his debut and I don't think we will have to wait too much longer.
This defence should be selling tips on how to stop Messi! The Argentine picks up the ball on the edge of the box and looks to drive into the area where he is so dangerous, but three players instantly crowd around him and win the ball.
GOAL! Lechia Gdansk 2-1 Barcelona (Piotr Grzelczak)
Oh my word, can you believe this?! Gdansk have regained the lead against Barcelona! It is another defensive error as Montoya is incredibly lax with a long ball over the top, allowing Grzelczak to close him down and get to the ball first. There is a suspicion of a handball, but the ref doesn't see it, allowing the Gdansk striker to smash the ball past Olazabal from a tight angle. The keeper probably shouldn't be beaten from that tight an angle, but the main blame there lies with Montoya, what was he doing?!
CLOSE! Messi has another free kick in a dangerous position, this time a little more central than his effort just before half time. He gets it over the wall with some wicked curl on it, but it doesn't dip enough and flies narrowly over the bar.
CHANCE! It really should be 3-1, that is an absolute sitter that Gdansk have just missed! A deep corner is skilfully volleyed towards the far post by Grzelczak and Tuszynski should have a very easy tap-in but somehow manages to chest it over the bar! Let off for Barca!
GOAL! Lechia Gdansk 2-2 Barcelona (Lionel Messi)
Messi is finally able to breach the Gdansk defence, but he has more than a little help from his friends. Alexis provides the final pass, slipping the ball round the side of the last man for Messi to run on to, and the four-time Ballon d'Or winner is never going to miss from there. He produces a trademark scooped finish just to make sure, and Barcelona are back level.
You just wonder whether that goal could act as the killer blow for Gdansk. They have performed admirably so far but surely Barcelona's superior quality will start to show more as the match drags on. Still, I've underestimated the Polish side a couple of times already this evening and I wouldn't be too surprised if they go up the other end and score!
CHANCE! That's reassuring - even Messi can miss sitters! A low cross is fed towards the striker in the edge of the box and he shows fine pace and movement to get in front of his man. It seems that all he has to do is stroke the ball into the corner from close range, but he somehow puts it wide. You would have put your house on him scoring there.
BARCELONA SUBS: Barca make a whole host of changes as the likes of Dongou and Patric come on, while Adriano and Song are among those to make way. Messi remains on the field, and Neymar remains off it.
Surely it won't be long until Neymar makes his bow now? This is the type of match that he could light up with his skills, and it is only going to get more open as it progresses as this Gdansk side don't look willing to park the bus in front of goal.
More dodgy defending from Barcelona as Oier fumbles the ball, prompting a mad scramble inside the box. The visitors eventually hack it clear, but their defence has been a source of concern this evening.
CLOSE! Grzelczak sends a curling free kick into the box, and it is one of those that is dangerous whether it gets a touch or not. This time no-one can get on the end of it, but it almost sneaks inside the far post, ending up only a yard or so wide with Oier beaten.
Gdansk have not been overwhelmed by their more illustrious opponents whatsoever. They rob Messi in midfield and immediately spark a counter attack that is brought to an end by a poor cross. They are still looking to attack at every opportunity, though.
Sanchez races down the right flank before pulling the ball back to Messi inside the box. Once again, though, Messi is immediately surrounded by a number of white shirts and can do nothing against the numbers game.
The moment that all Barcelona fans have been waiting for is nearing. Neymar had warmed up and is now waiting on the sidelines to make his Barcelona debut.
BARCELONA SUB: It won't happen just yet, however. Instead, Dongou - who wasn't one of those to come on earlier after all - replaces Lionel Messi. It really is a 'B' side plus Alexis out there for Barcelona now.
BARCELONA SUB: Here is that moment! Neymar enters the field of play in a Barcelona kit for the first time. Off comes Alexis Sanchez.
GDANSK SUB: Gdansk make a change of their own as Adam Duda replaces Frankowski. That is an attacking change.
Grzelczak puts in a naughty late challenge there, swinging an elbow across a Barcelona player's throat. He is lucky that the ref didn't see that as it could have been a red even in a friendly.
GDANSK SUB: On comes Kacprzycki for Czerwinski, which will be a straight swap in midfield for the Polish side.
Neymar has already been on the end of a couple of strong tackles as Gdansk look to make their mark on the Barcelona new boy. It is Kacprzycki who has put a couple of them in already, so he could have been brought on for the sole purpose of disrupting the Brazilian.
GDANSK SUB: Yet another sub for the hosts as Grzelczak, who scored his side's second goal, is replaced by Lazaj.
YELLOW CARD! Neymar is given the rough treatment once again, and this time the referee has had enough. He shows Oualembo the yellow card for a totting up of fouls - not all by him admittedly - on Neymar.
Gdansk are getting very physical all over the field now, to be honest. Neymar has been on the end of most of it, but the Polish side seem to be resorting to underhand tactics to see out this game, which is a shame as they have been very good throughout just playing normal football.
There will be three minutes of added time for one of these teams to find a winner. Can Gdansk hold out for what would be a famous result?
CHANCE! Oh Gdansk come so close to nicking a dramatic late winner! A fine cross eludes Duda and a teammate at the far post, ending up just past the post.
FULL TIME: Lechia Gdansk 2-2 Barcelona
It is a memorable result for Lechia Gdansk as they hold Barcelona to a 2-2 draw. They were worth it for large parts of the match as well. Things got a little scrappy towards the end as the Polish side attempted to see out the game by whatever means necessary, but we shouldn't forget how well they performed for the majority of the match.
The hosts took the lead through a towering header from captain Bieniuk before Sergi Roberto levelled the sides 10 minutes later. Gdansk amazingly then regained the lead after the break when Grzelczak pounced on a defensive error, but their advantage was even more short lived than the first as Messi made it 2-2 a couple of minutes later. Granted it was a weakened Barcelona side, but take nothing away from Gdansk, who were very impressive tonight.
Right, that's it from me tonight! Thank you for joining Sports Mole on what turned out to be an historic day for Gdansk as they held the mighty Barcelona to a 2-2 draw. Make sure to check out the match report which will be on site shortly, and Barcelona are back in action against Neymar's old club Santos on friendly, a match you can follow with us here on SM. Until then, though, goodbye!
Written by
Barney Corkhill
Barney Corkhill
