Barcelona survived without any Lionel Messi genius with late goals by Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Bojan Krkic to grab a laboured 2-0 win over Osasuna and go top of La Liga on Wednesday.
The champions moved on to 71 points from 28 games, three clear of title rivals Real Madrid, who visit neighbours Getafe on Thursday.
Argentina forward Messi has stolen the limelight at Barca in recent games, scoring 11 in the last five matches, but had a relatively quiet match at the Nou Camp.
The visitors comfortably held an out-of-sorts Barca at bay until the 72nd minute when Maxwell crossed low for Swedish striker Ibrahimovic to break the stalemate with his second goal in as many games.
Substitute Krkic struck near the end after a trademark passing move from the hosts as Osasuna’s defence finally succumbed to the relentless pressure.
Surely these are encouraging signs for Barcelona though, as they demonstrate being able to win games without being in top form, and without the genius of Lionel Messi
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