The 2020–21 season was the
121st season in the existence of
FC Barcelona
Futbol Club Barcelona (), commonly referred to as Barcelona and colloquially known as Barça (), is a professional football club based in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, that competes in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football.
Founded ...
and the 90th consecutive season in the top flight of
Spanish football
Football is the most popular sport in Spain. Spain has some of the most important teams in Europe (Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atlético de Madrid, Seville, Valencia, and others). It also has a high number of players (most of them being unprofession ...
. In addition to the
domestic league, Barcelona participated in this season's editions of the
Copa del Rey
The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footbal ...
, the
Supercopa de España
The Supercopa de España or the ''Spanish Super Cup'' is a super cup tournament in Spanish football. Founded in 1982 as a two-team competition, the current version has been contested since 2019–20 by four teams: the winners and runners-up of ...
, and the
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
. The season covered the period from 15 August 2020 to 30 June 2021, with the late start to the season due to the
COVID-19 pandemic in Spain
The COVID-19 pandemic in Spain has resulted in confirmed cases of COVID-19 and deaths.
The virus was first confirmed to have spread to Spain on 31 January 2020, when a German tourist tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 in La Gomera, Canary Island ...
. This season was notable for being
Lionel Messi
Lionel Andrés Messi (; born 24 June 1987), also known as Leo Messi, is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Paris Saint-Germain and captains the Argentina national team. Widely regarded as one of the ...
's last season for the club.
The season was the first since
2013–14 without
Luis Suárez
Luis Alberto Suárez Díaz (; born 24 January 1987) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Uruguayan Primera División club Nacional and the Uruguay national team. Nicknamed ''El Pistolero'' ('The Gunman'), he is ...
, who departed to
Atlético Madrid
Club Atlético de Madrid, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish profess ...
.
Kits
Season overview
August
On 17 August,
Quique Setién
Enrique "Quique" Setién Solar (; born 27 September 1958) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a central midfielder. He is the current manager of La Liga club Villarreal.
As a player, he was nicknamed ''El Maestro'', an ...
was dismissed as the first team head coach after only seven months in charge.
On 19 August, the club announced that
Ronald Koeman
Ronald Koeman (; born 21 March 1963) is a Dutch professional football manager and former player. He is the younger brother of his former international teammate Erwin Koeman and the son of former Dutch international Martin Koeman. Koeman was cap ...
would be the new head coach until 30 June 2022.
September
On 1 September, Barcelona reached an agreement with
Sevilla FC
Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville, the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. It plays in Spanish football's top flight, La Liga. Sevilla have won the UEFA Euro ...
for the transfer of
Ivan Rakitić
Ivan Rakitić (; born 10 March 1988) is a Croatian professional footballer who plays as a central or attacking midfielder for La Liga club Sevilla.
Rakitić started his professional career at Basel and spent two seasons with them before he was s ...
for €1.5 million plus €9 million in variables.
On 21 September, Barcelona reached an agreement with
PAOK FC
P.A.O.K. FC ( el, ΠΑΕ ΠΑΟΚ, Πανθεσσαλονίκειος Αθλητικός Όμιλος Κωνσταντινουπολιτών, '' Panthessaloníkios Athlitikós Ómilos Konstadinoupolitón'', "Pan-Thessalonian Athletic Club of ...
for the transfer of
Moussa Wagué
Moussa Wagué ( IPA: ; born 4 October 1998) is a Senegalese professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Prva HNL club Gorica and the Senegal national team.
Club career
Eupen
Wagué joined K.A.S. Eupen from the Aspire Academy in No ...
on loan for the rest of the season without a buy option.
On 22 September, Barcelona reached an agreement with
Inter Milan
Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Football in Italy, Italian professional Association football, football ...
for the
free transfer of
Arturo Vidal
Arturo Erasmo Vidal Pardo (; born 22 May 1987) is a Chilean professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Campeonato Brasileiro Série A club Flamengo and the Chile national team. His displays during his time at Juventus led him to be n ...
with €1 million in variables.
On 23 September, Barcelona announced the transfer of
Nélson Semedo
Nélson Cabral Semedo (born 16 November 1993) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers and the Portugal national team.
Semedo began his career at Sintrense before joini ...
to
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...
for a fee of €30 million plus €10 million in variables. On the same day, Barça announced that the club had reached an agreement with
Atlético Madrid
Club Atlético de Madrid, Sociedad Anónima Deportiva, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), known simply as Atleti in the Spanish-speaking world and commonly referred to at international level as Atlético Madrid, is a Spanish profess ...
for the departure of
Luis Suárez
Luis Alberto Suárez Díaz (; born 24 January 1987) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Uruguayan Primera División club Nacional and the Uruguay national team. Nicknamed ''El Pistolero'' ('The Gunman'), he is ...
on a free transfer with €6 million in variables.
On 27 September, Barcelona won their
La Liga
The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera División, commonly known simply as Primera División in Spain, and as La Liga in English-speaking countries and officially as LaLiga Santander for sponsorship reasons, stylized as LaLiga, is the men's ...
opener in a 4–0 home win against
Villarreal CF
Villarreal Club de Fútbol, S.A.D. ( ca-valencia, Vila-real Club de Futbol, S.A.D.), usually abbreviated to Villarreal CF or simply Villarreal, is a professional football club based in Villarreal, in the Castellón province of eastern Spain, th ...
. A brace from
Ansu Fati
Anssumane "Ansu" Fati Vieira (born 31 October 2002) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a forward for La Liga club Barcelona and the Spain national team.
Fati was born in Guinea-Bissau but chose to represent the Spain national t ...
, a
penalty
Penalty or The Penalty may refer to:
Sports
* Penalty (golf)
* Penalty (gridiron football)
* Penalty (ice hockey)
* Penalty (rugby)
* Penalty (rugby union)
* Penalty kick (association football)
* Penalty shoot-out (association football)
* Penalty ...
from
Lionel Messi
Lionel Andrés Messi (; born 24 June 1987), also known as Leo Messi, is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Paris Saint-Germain and captains the Argentina national team. Widely regarded as one of the ...
, and an
own goal
An own goal, also called a self goal, is where a player performs actions that result in them or their team scoring a goal on themselves, often resulting in a point for the opposing team, such as when a football player kicks a ball into their own ...
from
Pau Torres gave Barça the victory.
October
On 1 October, Barcelona announced the signing of
Sergiño Dest
Sergiño Gianni Dest (born November 3, 2000) is a professional soccer player who plays as a full-back for club AC Milan, on loan from Barcelona. Born in the Netherlands to a Dutch mother and Surinamese-American father, he represents the United ...
from
AFC Ajax
Amsterdamsche Football Club Ajax (), also known as AFC Ajax, Ajax Amsterdam, or simply Ajax, is a Dutch professional football club based in Amsterdam, that plays in the , the top tier in Dutch football. Historically, Ajax (named after the l ...
for a fee of €21 million plus €5 million in variables. Later that same day, Barça defeated
Celta de Vigo
Real Club Celta de Vigo (; ), commonly known as Celta de Vigo or simply Celta, is a Spanish professional football club based in Vigo, Galicia, that competes in La Liga, the top tier of Spanish football. Nicknamed ''Os Celestes'' (The Sky Blues ...
3–0 away from home. Another goal from Ansu Fati, a
Lucas Olaza
Lucas René Olaza Catrofe (born 21 July 1994) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Russian Premier League club Krasnodar and the Uruguay national team.
Club career
Olaza was born in Montevideo. After graduating ...
own goal, and a late goal from
Sergi Roberto
Sergi Roberto Carnicer (, born 7 February 1992) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for La Liga club Barcelona and the Spain national team. Mainly a central midfielder, he can also operate as a defensive midfielder, full-back or wi ...
sealed the victory for the ''Blaugrana'', ending a five-year winless streak at the
Balaídos
The Estadio Municipal de Balaídos (), known as Abanca-Balaídos for sponsorship reasons, is an all-seater stadium located in Vigo, Spain. It is owned by the Vigo's city council, and is the home of La Liga club Celta Vigo. The stadium opened on ...
.
On 4 October, Barcelona drew 1–1 with Sevilla at home.
Luuk de Jong
Luuk de Jong (; born 27 August 1990) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a striker for Eredivisie club PSV Eindhoven and the Netherlands national team.
De Jong previously played for DZC '68, De Graafschap, Twente, Borussia Mönc ...
got the visitors off the mark but
Philippe Coutinho
Philippe Coutinho Correia (born 12 June 1992) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for Premier League club Aston Villa and the Brazil national team. He is known for his combination of vision, ...
equalized for the home side shortly after.
On 5 October, Barcelona reached an agreement with
S.L. Benfica
Sport Lisboa e Benfica (), commonly known as Benfica, is a professional association football, football club based in Lisbon, Portugal, that competes in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Portuguese football league system, Portuguese footba ...
for the loan of
Jean-Clair Todibo
Jean-Clair Dimitri Roger Todibo (born 30 December 1999) is a French professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Ligue 1 club Nice and the France national team.
Club career Toulouse
Todibo joined the Toulouse in 2016, from FC Les Lil ...
with an option to buy for €20 million. The club also announced the departure of
Rafinha to
Paris Saint-Germain
Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (), commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain, Paris, Paris SG or simply PSG is a professional football club based in Paris, France. They compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. As Fr ...
on a free transfer.
On 17 October, Barcelona lost 1–0 to
Getafe CF
Getafe Club de Fútbol (), or simply Getafe, is a professional football club based in Getafe, a city in the Community of Madrid. The team competes in La Liga, the highest tier of the Spanish football system. The club's home stadium (owned and op ...
away from home.
Jaime Mata
Jaime Mata Arnaiz (born 24 October 1988) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Getafe CF as a striker.
Club career
Born in Madrid, Mata finished his youth career with local Galáctico Pegaso, making his senior debut with the reser ...
scored from the penalty spot to inflict Barça's first defeat of the season.
On 20 October, Barcelona beat
Ferencváros
Ferencváros () is the 9th district of Budapest ( hu, Budapest IX. kerülete), Hungary.
Name
The southern suburb of Pest was named after King Francis I on 4 December 1792 when he was crowned king of Hungary.
History
The development of Fe ...
5–1 in their first
Champions League game of the
season
A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...
. Goals from Lionel Messi, Ansu Fati, Philippe Coutinho,
Pedri
Pedro González López (born 25 November 2002), known as Pedri, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for La Liga club Barcelona and the Spain national team.
Early life
Born in Bajamar, Tenerife, Canary Islan ...
, and
Ousmane Dembélé
Masour Ousmane Dembélé (born 15 May 1997) is a French professional footballer who plays as a winger for La Liga club Barcelona and the France national team.
Dembélé began his career at Rennes before joining Borussia Dortmund in 2016. He ...
ensured victory for the ''Blaugrana''. Later that day, Barça announced the contract extensions of
Gerard Piqué
Gerard Piqué Bernabeu (, ; born 2 February 1987) is a Spanish former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He is considered one of the best defenders of his generation.
Initially a highly promising student at La Masia, Piqué ...
until 2024,
Marc-André ter Stegen
Marc-André ter Stegen ( ; born 30 April 1992) is a German professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for La Liga club Barcelona and the Germany national team. Regarded as a highly promising player in his youth, he has since established ...
until 2025,
Frenkie de Jong
Frenkie de Jong (born 12 May 1997) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for La Liga club Barcelona and the Netherlands national team. A versatile midfielder, he is known for his vision, passing, dribbling, technique, alo ...
and
Clément Lenglet
Clément Nicolas Laurent Lenglet (born 17 June 1995) is a French professional Association football, footballer who plays as a centre-back for Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Tottenham Hotspur on loan from La Liga club FC Barcelona, Bar ...
until 2026.
On 24 October, Barcelona lost 3–1 at home to rivals
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
in ''
El Clásico
El Clásico or el clásico (; ca, El Clàssic, ; ) is the name given to any football match between rival clubs FC Barcelona and Real Madrid. Originally referring to competitions held in the Spanish championship, the term now includes every m ...
''.
Federico Valverde
Federico Santiago Valverde Dipetta (; born 22 July 1998) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid and the Uruguay national team. A versatile player known for his pace, stamina, and w ...
got the visitors off the mark early into the match but Ansu Fati equalized shortly after, in the process becoming the second youngest goalscorer in ''El Clásico'' history and scoring Barça's 400th goal in the fixture's history.
Sergio Ramos
Sergio Ramos García (; born 30 March 1986) is a Spanish professional Association football, footballer who plays as a centre-back for Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain F.C., Paris Saint-Germain and the Spain national football team, Spain nationa ...
scored from the penalty spot after a controversial penalty decision and
Luka Modrić
Luka Modrić (; born 9 September 1985) is a Croatian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid and captains the Croatia national team. He plays mainly as a central midfielder, but can also play as an attack ...
sealed the game off for ''Los Blancos''.
On 27 October, President
Josep Maria Bartomeu
Josep Maria Bartomeu Floreta (born 6 February 1963) is a Spanish entrepreneur, and a former president of football club FC Barcelona. He started his presidency in 2014, following the resignation of Sandro Rosell; he held the post until his resign ...
announced his resignation and the resignation of his board of directors, after six years of being the head of the club.
On 28 October, Barcelona announced that Carles Tusquets would be the interim club president until elections were held. Later that same day, Barça defeated
Juventus
Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional Association football, football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football leagu ...
2–0 away from home in the Champions League. Goals from Dembélé and Messi gave Barça the victory.
On 31 October, Barcelona drew 1–1 with
Deportivo Alavés
Deportivo Alavés, S.A.D. (; ''Sporting Alavés''), usually abbreviated to Alavés, is a List of football clubs in Spain, Spanish football club based in Vitoria-Gasteiz, Álava, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of the ...
.
Luis Rioja
Luis Jesús Rioja González (born 16 October 1993) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Deportivo Alavés as a left winger.
Career
Rioja was born in Las Cabezas de San Juan, Seville, Andalusia, and was a CD Cabecense youth gradua ...
would take advantage of a mix-up between Gerard Piqué and
Neto to put the home side 1–0 up.
Antoine Griezmann
Antoine Griezmann (; born 21 March 1991) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for La Liga club Atlético Madrid and the France national team. A versatile player, Griezmann is known for his attacking, passing, and supportiv ...
would equalize in the second-half and score his first goal of the season.
November
On 4 November, Barcelona defeated
Dynamo Kyiv
Football Club Dynamo Kyiv (, ) is a Ukrainian professional Association football, football club based in Kyiv. Founded in 1927 as a Kyivan football team of republican branch of the bigger Soviet Union, Soviet Dynamo Sports Club, Dynamo Sports Soc ...
2–1 at home in the Champions League. An early goal from Messi and a
header from Piqué ensured victory for Barça.
On 7 November, Barcelona defeated
Real Betis
Real Betis Balompié, known as Real Betis () or just Betis, is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1907, it plays in La Liga. It holds home games at the Estadio Benito Vill ...
5–2 at home. Goals from Dembélé, Griezmann, Pedri and a brace from Messi gave Barça the win.
On 21 November, Barcelona lost 1–0 to Atlético Madrid away from home.
Yannick Carrasco
Yannick Ferreira Carrasco (born 4 September 1993) is a Belgian footballer who plays for La Liga club Atlético Madrid and the Belgium national team as a winger or wing-back.
He began his career with Monaco, where he scored 20 goals in 105 ...
scored the only goal after taking advantage of a mistake from Marc-André ter Stegen.
On 24 November, Barcelona defeated Dynamo Kyiv 4–0 away from home in the Champions League. Sergiño Dest scored his first goal for Barcelona,
Martin Braithwaite
Martin Christensen Braithwaite (; born 5 June 1991) is a Danish professional footballer who plays for La Liga club Espanyol and the Denmark national team. He plays mainly as a forward, but he can also play as a winger.
Having begun his career ...
scored a brace, and Griezmann came off the bench to finish the game off.
On 30 November, Barcelona defeated
Osasuna
Club Atlético Osasuna (, ''Osasuna Athletic Club''), or simply Osasuna, is a Spanish professional football club in Pamplona, Navarre. Founded on 24 October 1920, the club currently plays in La Liga, holding home games at the 23,576-capacity El ...
4–0 at home. Braithwaite, Griezmann, Coutinho and Messi were the goalscorers.
December
On 2 December, Barcelona defeated Ferencváros 3–0 away from home in the Champions League. First half goals from Griezmann, Braithwaite and Dembélé were enough to secure a comfortable victory.
On 5 December, Barcelona lost to
Cádiz CF
Cádiz Club de Fútbol, S.A.D., known simply as Cádiz, is a Spanish professional football club based in Cádiz, Andalusia.
Founded in 1910, the club competes in the La Liga, holding home games at Nuevo Mirandilla, with a seating capacity of 20 ...
2–1 away from home in the league.
Álvaro Giménez
Álvaro Giménez Candela (born 19 May 1991), sometimes known simply as Álvaro, is a Spanish footballer who plays as a forward.
He began his senior career with Elche and played for Valencia B and Torrellano Illice before making his top-fligh ...
scored first for the home side but Barça drew level with an own goal from
Pedro Alcalá. The Andalusians went back in front after
Álvaro Negredo
Álvaro Negredo Sánchez (; born 20 August 1985) is a Spanish professional Association football, footballer who plays for Cádiz CF, Cádiz as a Striker (association football), striker.
Nicknamed ''La fiera de Vallecas'' (The beast of Vallecas ...
came off the bench to score the winner.
On 8 December, Barcelona lost to Juventus 3–0 at home in the Champions League after conceding two penalties converted by
Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro (; born 5 February 1985) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a forward and captains the Portugal national team. He is currently a free agent. Widely regarded as one of the greatest p ...
and a goal from
Weston McKennie
Weston James Earl McKennie (born August 28, 1998) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for club Juventus and the United States national team. A versatile player, McKennie is capable of playing in a multitude of p ...
. As a result, Barcelona finished 2nd in Champions League Group G.
On 13 December, Barcelona defeated
Levante 1–0 at home. Messi scored the only goal in the game.
On 16 December, Barcelona defeated
Real Sociedad
Real Sociedad de Fútbol, S.A.D., more commonly referred to as Real Sociedad (; ''Royal Society''), La Real in Spanish, Erreala in Basque, is a Spanish professional sports club in the city of San Sebastián, Basque Country, founded on 7 Septem ...
2–1 at home.
Jordi Alba
Jordi Alba Ramos (born 21 March 1989) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a left-back for La Liga club Barcelona and the Spain national team. He is often regarded as one of the best left-backs of his generation.
Alba started his ...
and Frenkie de Jong scored for Barça after trailing by one goal.
On 19 December, Barcelona drew 2–2 with
Valencia
Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, Valencia and the Municipalities of Spain, third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is ...
at home. Lionel Messi and
Ronald Araújo
Ronald Federico Araújo da Silva (born 7 March 1999) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for La Liga club Barcelona and the Uruguay national team. He was nicknamed the Titan, because of his strength and speed.
Cl ...
were the goalscorers for Barça.
On 22 December, Barcelona defeated
Real Valladolid
Real Valladolid Club de Fútbol, S.A.D., or simply Real Valladolid () or Valladolid, is a professional football club based in Valladolid, Castile and León, Spain that competes in La Liga, the top tier of the Spanish league system.
The club colo ...
3–0 away from home. Lenglet, Braithwaite and Messi were the goalscorers. Messi surpassed
Pelé
Edson Arantes do Nascimento (; born 23 October 1940), known as Pelé (), is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a forward. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time and labelled "the greatest" by FIFA, ...
as the highest goalscorer for a single club with his goal against Valladolid.
On 29 December, Barcelona drew 1–1 with
Eibar
Eibar ( eu, Eibar, es, Éibar) is a city and municipality within the province of Gipuzkoa, in the Basque Country of Spain. It is the head town of Debabarrena, one of the '' eskualde / comarca'' of Gipuzkoa.
Eibar has 27,138 inhabitants ( Eustat ...
at home.
Kike
The word ''kike'' () is an ethnic slur for a Jew.
Etymology
The earliest recorded use of the word dates to the 1880s. got the visitors off the mark after taking advantage of an error by Araújo. Dembélé came off the bench to score the equalizer.
January
On 3 January, Barcelona defeated
Huesca
Huesca (; an, Uesca) is a city in north-eastern Spain, within the autonomous community of Aragon. It is also the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and of the comarca of Hoya de Huesca. In 2009 it had a population of 52,059, almo ...
1–0 away from home. De Jong scored the only goal in the game.
On 6 January, Barcelona and Getafe reached an agreement for the loan of
Carles Aleñá
Carles Aleñá Castillo (born 5 January 1998) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Getafe.
Club career Barcelona
Born in Mataró, Barcelona, Catalonia, Aleñá moved to Barcelona's youth system, La Masia, i ...
for the remainder of the season. Later that same day, Barcelona defeated
Athletic Bilbao
Athletic Club ( eu, Bilboko Athletic Kluba; es, Athletic Club de Bilbao), commonly known as Athletic Bilbao or just Athletic, is a professional Association football, football club based in the city of Bilbao in the Basque Country (autonomous com ...
3–2 away from home.
Iñaki Williams
Iñaki Williams Arthuer (born 15 June 1994) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for La Liga club Athletic Bilbao and the Ghana national team.
Developed at Athletic Bilbao's academy, he has made over 350 first-team appearances ...
gave an early lead for the home side but Pedri equalized with a header. Messi sealed victory for Barça by scoring two goals.
On 9 January, Barcelona defeated
Granada
Granada (,, DIN 31635, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the fo ...
4–0 away from home. Braces from Griezmann and Messi earned a comfortable victory for Barça.
On 13 January, Barcelona defeated Real Sociedad in a
penalty shoot-out
The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pen ...
2–3 in the
Supercopa de España
The Supercopa de España or the ''Spanish Super Cup'' is a super cup tournament in Spanish football. Founded in 1982 as a two-team competition, the current version has been contested since 2019–20 by four teams: the winners and runners-up of ...
after the score ended 1–1 during regulation time and
extra time
Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played onl ...
. Frenkie de Jong put Barça in the lead after converting a header, but
Mikel Oyarzabal
Mikel Oyarzabal Ugarte (born 21 April 1997) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a left winger or forward for La Liga club Real Sociedad and the Spain national team.
He has spent his entire professional career with Real Sociedad, m ...
equalized for ''La Real'' in the second half. Ter Stegen would go on to save two penalties in the shoot-out and
Riqui Puig
Ricard "Riqui" Puig Martí (; born 13 August 1999) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Major League Soccer club LA Galaxy.
Club career FC Barcelona
Born in Matadepera, Barcelona, Catalonia, Puig joined FC Barcelo ...
stepped up and scored the decisive penalty to send the Catalans to the final.
On 17 January, Barcelona lost 3–2 to Athletic Bilbao in the
Supercopa de España final. Antoine Griezmann struck first and put Barça in the lead but
Óscar de Marcos
Óscar de Marcos Arana (; ; born 14 April 1989) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for Athletic Bilbao usually as a midfielder but also as a full-back.
De Marcos began his career at Alavés, but went on to spend most of it at Ath ...
quickly equalized. Griezmann would later score again, but
Asier Villalibre
Asier Villalibre Molina (born 30 September 1997) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a striker for Athletic Bilbao.
Club career
Born in Guernica, Biscay, Basque Country, Villalibre joined Athletic Bilbao's youth setup in 2011 ...
scored in the final minute to make the score 2–2 and send the match into extra time. Iñaki Williams scored at the start of extra time and ''Los Leones'' won the Super Cup. The game also featured Lionel Messi's first red card while playing for FC Barcelona.
On 21 January, Barcelona defeated
Cornellà 2–0 away from home in the
Copa del Rey
The Campeonato de España–Copa de Su Majestad el Rey, commonly known as Copa del Rey or simply La Copa and formerly known as Copa del Presidente de la República (1932–36) and Copa del Generalísimo (1939–76), is an annual knockout footbal ...
. Dembélé and Braithwaite scored the goals in extra time.
On 24 January, Barcelona defeated
Elche
Elche ( ca-valencia, Elx) is a city and municipality of Spain, belonging to the province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. According to 2014 data, Elche has a population of 228,647 inhabitants,[Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero
The Estadio Martínez Valero is a stadium located in the Spanish city of Elche in the province of Alicante, Valencian Community. It is the home stadium of Elche CF, a team that is currently playing in La Liga. Its name pays tribute to the late pre ...]
. Frenkie de Jong and Riqui Puig scored for the ''Blaugrana''. The latter also scored his first goal for the first team.
On 27 January, Barcelona defeated
Rayo Vallecano
Rayo Vallecano de Madrid, S.A.D. (), often abbreviated to Rayo (Spanish for "thunderbolt"), is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid, in the neighbourhood of Vallecas. Rayo was founded on 29 May 1924, and currently compete in La Lig ...
2–1 away from home in Copa del Rey round of 16. Rayo took the lead in the 63rd minute, but Barça came-back with goals from Messi and De Jong.
On 31 January, Barça defeated Athletic Bilbao 2–1 at home in La Liga. Messi scored his 650th for the club and Griezmann scored to claim all three points.
February
On 1 February, Barcelona announced that the club had reached an agreement with Benfica to terminate the loan of Jean-Clair Todibo. Todibo subsequently joined
OGC Nice
Olympique Gymnaste Club Nice Côte d'Azur (), commonly referred to as OGC Nice or simply Nice, is a French professional football club based in Nice. The club was founded in 1904 and currently plays in Ligue 1, the top tier of French football. ...
on loan until the remainder of the season, with an option to buy for €8.5 million.
On 3 February, Barcelona defeated Granada 5–3 away from home in the Copa del Rey quarter-finals. The home side took a 2–0 lead through goals from
Kenedy and
Roberto Soldado
Roberto Soldado Rillo (; born 27 May 1985) is a Spanish professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Striker (association football), striker for Segunda División club Levante UD, Levante.
After emerging through Real Madrid CF, ...
, but Barça came back in the last minutes of the game with goals from Antoine Griezmann and Jordi Alba, forcing extra time. Barça took the lead in the 100th minute of extra time with a header from Griezmann, but Granada soon equalized with a penalty converted by
Fede Vico
Federico 'Fede' Vico Villegas (born 4 July 1994) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for CD Leganés. Mainly a left winger, he can also play as a left-back.
Club career
Vico was born in Córdoba, Andalusia. Midway through the 2010 ...
. However, Barça again took the lead with a goal from De Jong, and the game was sealed with a rasping volley from Jordi Alba, assuring passage to the semi-finals.
On 7 February, Barcelona defeated Real Betis 3–2 away from home. The hosts took the lead through
Borja Iglesias
Borja Iglesias Quintas (; born 17 January 1993) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a striker for La Liga club Real Betis.
Formed at Celta, where he played mainly in the reserves, he achieved totals of over 150 La Liga games and ...
but a goal from Messi and an own goal from
Víctor Ruiz handed Barcelona the lead, until the latter made amends for his own goal by equalizing the game.
Francisco Trincão came off the bench to score his first goal for Barça and secure the win.
On 10 February, Barcelona lost to Sevilla 2–0 in the first leg of Copa del Rey semi-finals.
Jules Koundé
Jules Olivier Koundé (born 12 November 1998) is a French professional Association football, footballer who plays as a centre-back or right-back for La Liga club FC Barcelona, Barcelona and the France national football team, France national team ...
and former Barça player Ivan Rakitić scored the goals for Sevilla.
On 13 February, Barcelona defeated Deportivo Alavés 5–1 at home. Braces from Trincão and Messi and a goal from
Junior Firpo
Héctor Junior Firpo Adames (born 22 August 1996), known as Junior Firpo or simply Junior, is a professional footballer who plays as a defender for club Leeds United. Mainly a left-back, he can also play as a centre-back or right-back.
Club c ...
led the ''Blaugrana'' to victory.
On 16 February, Barcelona lost to Paris Saint-Germain 4–1 at home in the first leg of the Champions League
round of 16
A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...
.
Messi scored from the penalty spot to put Barça in the lead but a hat-trick from
Kylian Mbappé
Kylian Mbappé Lottin (born 20 December 1998) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Paris Saint-Germain and the France national team. Considered one of the best players in the world, he is renowned for his dribb ...
and a goal from
Moise Kean
Bioty Moise Kean (, ; born 28 February 2000) is an Italian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward for Serie A club Juventus F.C., Juventus and the Italy national football team, Italy ...
gave the visitors the victory.
On 21 February, Barcelona drew 1–1 with Cádiz at home. Messi scored from the penalty spot to give the lead for Barça but Cádiz drew late with a penalty converted by
Álex Fernández
Alejandro "Álex" Fernández Iglesias (born 15 October 1992) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for La Liga club Cádiz.
Club career Real Madrid
Born in Madrid, Fernández joined Real Madrid's youth system from neigh ...
.
On 24 February, Barcelona defeated Elche 3–0 at home. A brace from Messi and a goal from Jordi Alba were enough to take all three points.
On 27 February, Barcelona defeated Sevilla 2–0 away from home. Dembélé and Messi were the goalscorers.
March
On 3 March, Barcelona defeated Sevilla 3–0 (3–2
agg.) in the second leg of Copa del Rey
semi-finals
A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...
. An early goal from Dembélé and a goal from Piqué in the last minute of the game leveled the aggregate score and forced the match into extra time. Martin Braithwaite scored the winning goal in 95th minute to secure a spot in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
.
On 6 March, Barcelona defeated Osasuna 2–0 away from home. Jordi Alba and
Ilaix Moriba
Moriba Kourouma Kourouma (born 19 January 2003), known as Ilaix Moriba (), is a Guinean professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for La Liga club Valencia, on loan from Bundesliga club RB Leipzig, and the Guinea national team.
...
scored for the ''Blaugrana'', with the latter scoring his first senior goal.
On 7 March,
Joan Laporta
Joan Laporta Estruch (; born 29 June 1962) is a Spanish politician and current president of FC Barcelona.
Laporta is a lawyer (he graduated from the University of Barcelona) with his own firm, Laporta & Arbós, which has a number of notable Sp ...
was
elected Elected may refer to:
* "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973
* ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008
*The Elected, an American indie rock band
See also
*Election
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a populatio ...
as the new club president, having previously served as club president from 2003 until 2010.
On 10 March, Barcelona drew 1–1 with Paris Saint-Germain in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16. Kylian Mbappé scored from the penalty spot to put Paris in the lead but Messi equalized for Barça shortly after. With an aggregate score of 5–2, Barcelona were eliminated from the Champions League.
On 15 March, Barcelona defeated Huesca 4–1 at home. A brace from Messi and goals from Griezmann and
Óscar Mingueza
Óscar Mingueza García (born 13 May 1999) is a Spanish professional association football player who plays as a Defender (association football), defender for La Liga club Celta Vigo. Mainly a centre-back, he can also play in either Full-back (as ...
– with his first senior goal – led the ''Blaugrana'' to victory.
On 21 March, Barcelona defeated Real Sociedad 6–1 away from home. Dest and Messi scored braces while Griezmann and Dembélé scored a goal each.
April
On 5 April, Barcelona defeated Real Valladolid 1–0 at home. Dembélé scored the winning goal in the 90th minute. After this victory Barcelona stood one point away from Atlético, one week before El Clásico. This meant Barcelona had reduced the distance with La Liga's leaders by 11 points since last defeat against Cádiz on December 5th, winning 51 of 57 possible points.
On 10 April, Barcelona lost 2–1 to fierce rivals Real Madrid away from home. First half goals came from
Karim Benzema
Karim Mostafa Benzema (born 19 December 1987) is a French professional footballer who plays as a striker for and captains La Liga club Real Madrid. A creative and prolific forward, Benzema is regarded as one of the best strikers of all time. ...
and
Toni Kroos
Toni Kroos (born 4 January 1990) is a German professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for La Liga club Real Madrid. Kroos plays mainly as a central midfielder, but has also been deployed as a deep-lying playmaker in his career. He is kn ...
, and while Óscar Mingueza pulled one back for the Catalans, however it wasn't enough as the visitors lost the first ''Clásico'' at the
Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium
Alfredo (, ) is a cognate of the Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon name Alfred (name), Alfred and a common Italian language, Italian, Galician language, Galician, Portuguese language, Portuguese and Spanish language personal name.
People with the given na ...
.
On 17 April, Barcelona won their 31st Copa del Rey after defeating Athletic Bilbao 4–0 in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
. De Jong and Griezmann scored a goal each while Messi scored a brace.
On 22 April, Barcelona released a statement confirming that the Catalan club would be forming a part of a breakaway
European Super League
The European Super League (ESL), officially The Super League, was a proposed seasonal club football competition that initially would have been contested by twenty European football clubs, twelve of them being the competition's founding members. ...
, a proposed annual club football competition to be contested by twenty of
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
's most elite football clubs. Later that day, Barça defeated Getafe 5–2 at home. A brace from Messi, a header from Araújo, a penalty converted by Griezmann and an own goal secured victory for the home side.
On 25 April, Barcelona defeated Villarreal 2–1 away from home. A brace from Griezmann in the first half helped turn the tie around for the visitors after being a goal behind.
On 29 April, Barcelona lost 2–1 to Granada at home. Messi gave Barcelona the lead in the first half, but the ''Blaugrana'' ended up being the losing side after conceding two goals in the second half from
Darwin Machís
Darwin Daniel Machís Marcano (born 7 February 1993) is a Venezuelan professional footballer who plays as a left winger for La Liga club Cádiz, on loan from Valladolid, and the Venezuela national team.
Club career
Machís started his career ...
and
Jorge Molina.
May
On 2 May, Barcelona defeated Valencia 3–2 away from home. A brace from Messi and a goal scored by Griezmann secured victory for the visitors after being a goal behind.
On 8 May, Barcelona drew 0–0 against Atlético Madrid at home.
On 11 May, Barcelona drew 3–3 against Levante away from home. Goals from Messi and Pedri gave a two goal lead in the first half, but was equalized after Levante scored two goals in two minutes. Barcelona restored the lead from a goal from Dembélé, but the lead was cancelled again after the home side scored a goal.
On 16 May, Barcelona lost 2–1 to Celta Vigo at home. Messi gave Barcelona the lead, but a brace from
Santi Mina
Santiago Mina Lorenzo (; born 7 December 1995) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Saudi Professional League club Al Shabab on loan from RC Celta de Vigo.
He spent most of his career at Celta, totalling 163 games a ...
won the game for Celta.
On 22 May, Barcelona defeated Eibar 1–0 away from home, with Griezmann scoring the only goal of the game. Barcelona ended the season with a 3rd place finish in La Liga.
Players
From
Barcelona B
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
and
Youth Academy
In sporting terminology, a youth system (or youth academy) is a youth investment program within a particular team or league, which develops and nurtures young talent in farm teams, with the vision of using them in the first team in the future if t ...
Transfers
In
Out
Loans out
Transfer summary
''Undisclosed fees are not included in the transfer totals.''
Expenditure
Summer: €124,000,000
Winter: €0,000,000
Total: €124,000,000
Income
Summer: €137,000,000
Winter: €0,000,000
Total: €137,000,000
Net totals
Summer: €13,000,000
Winter: €000,000
Total: €13,000,000
Pre-season and friendlies
Competitions
Overall record
La Liga
League table
Results summary
Results by round
Matches
The league fixtures were announced on 31 August 2020.
Copa del Rey
Supercopa de España
The draw was held on 17 December 2020.
UEFA Champions League
Group stage
The group stage draw was held on 1 October 2020.
Knockout phase
=Round of 16
=
The draw for the round of 16 was held on 14 December 2020.
Statistics
Squad appearances and goals
, -
! colspan="14" style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center", Goalkeepers
, -
! colspan="14" style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center", Defenders
, -
! colspan="14" style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center", Midfielders
, -
! colspan="14" style="background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center", Forwards
, -
! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center, Players who made an appearance this season but left the club
Goalscorers
Disciplinary record
Injury record
Notes
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:2020-21 FC Barcelona Season
FC Barcelona seasons
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
2020–21 in Catalan football