Barca make it two from two

Barca make it two from two

Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Lionel Messi netted second-half goals as Barcelona made it two wins from two at the start of the Primera Division season and ended Getafe's short stay in top spot with a 2-0 victory.

Ibrahimovic, having netted on his league debut for Barca in their 3-0 win over Sporting Gijon a fortnight ago, paid back a little more of his 66million euro transfer fee by opening the scoring in the 65th minute.

The former Inter Milan hitman then turned provider to set up Messi for Barca's second 12 minutes from time as last season's treble winners came out on top in the battle between the leading two sides from the opening round of fixtures.

Barca coach Pep Guardiola opted to field a number of fringe players in his starting line-up for the match, no doubt with one eye on next week's testing Champions League trip to Inter Milan.

However, the Catalan giants still had plenty of firepower should they have needed it with their substitutes' bench reading like a who's who of international superstars - among them Thierry Henry, Messi, Dani Alves and Andres Iniesta.

And it was not until Guardiola opted to send Messi and Iniesta on as a double substitution just before the hour mark that Barca managed to take control of the game.

Up until that point the reigning champions had struggled to get the upper hand, and they could consider themselves somewhat fortunate to have been on level terms at the break after Getafe twice hit the woodwork.

The first time was in the 12th minute when Juan Albin's left-footed shot from outside the box smashed against the underside of the crossbar with Victor Valdes nothing more than a helpless onlooker.

Fifteen minutes after that it was the turn of Roberto Soldado, Getafe's hat-trick hero in their opening-day 4-1 win over Racing Santander.

Pedro Leon played in a low cross from the right and Soldado's acrobatic overhead kick struck the near post, with Valdes again motionless.

Aside from the hugely impressive Xavi, Barca looked short of ideas going forward in the opening 45 minutes, although Ibrahimovic did have a great chance to break the deadlock just before the break.

He muscled his way clear of his marker but with just Oscar Ustari to beat he saw his low shot saved by the Getafe goalkeeper.

Getafe were making life difficult for their illustrious visitors, but the introductions of Messi and Iniesta - playing his first match since last season's Champions League final due to injury - changed the whole complexion of the match.

Within two minutes of their arrival Xavi almost netted with a superb dipping 25-yard strike that Ustari did well to tip over, and soon after that Barca did finally score through Ibrahimovic.

Eric Abidal's low cross from the right looked to have eluded the Swede, but the giant striker stuck out his leg and managed to deflect the ball just inside the far post.

Getafe tried to mount an immediate response and Adrian tested Valdes and Albin blazed a half-chance well over, but aside from that it was pretty much all Barca in the final 20 minutes.

Iniesta could have made it 2-0 in the 76th minute but he fired straight at Ustari with just the keeper to beat.

Barca need not have worried, though, because two minutes after that Messi did double his side's lead.

Alves, having also come off the bench, sent over a deep cross that Ibrahimovic controlled before unselfishly chipping back across goal for the unmarked Messi to thump a powerful header into the roof of the net.

Messi and Ibrahimovic could have added more goals in the closing stages, but Barca had already done enough to take the spoils and they will travel to Italy in buoyant mood.