MADRID (Reuters) - A last-minute VAR decision helped Barcelona to secure an unconvincing 1-0 La Liga win over newly-promoted Valladolid on Saturday.
After Ousmane Dembele gave the champions a 1-0 lead in the 57th minute, Keko thought he had snatched a stoppage time equaliser for Valladolid but was denied the goal as the video assistant referee ruled that the winger had netted from an offside position.
On a newly-laid pitch that began cutting up in the warm-up, a number of Barca players were left visibly frustrated as they struggled to impose their usual passing style.
When they did eventually get going, former Barca academy keeper Jordi Masip spectacularly denied Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho.
There was nothing Masip could do when Dembele fired in from Sergi Roberto’s knockdown 10 minutes after the restart to seal the points.
The win ensured the Catalans maintained their 100 percent start to the season, while Valladolid have one point after two games.
(Reporting by Joseph Cassinelli, editing by Pritha Sarkar)