Barcelona

3.45

• 
  38

  4

  3.00

  Víctor Valdés

  Barely touched the ball in the entire ninety minutes, in what will be close to his most straightforward match of the campaign, and was completely helpless for Duda's free kick

• 
  47

  4

  3.50

  Éric Abidal

  His recent goal in the Copa del Rey has given him a thirst for getting forward, and almost all of his touches of the ball came in opposition territory.

• 
  43

  4

  3.00

  Piqué

  A stroll under the Camp Nou lights for the defender. Baptista gave him little trouble, and he often took to stepping out of defence just to get himself involved in the match.

• 
  44

  2

  3.00

  Carles Puyol

  The captain was as committed as ever, despite Barca's dominance, to ensure that the team kept a clean sheet at all costs, but was disappointed to see Duda's free kick blemish his record.

• 
  41

  18

  3.00

  Daniel Alves

  The Brazilian limped off midway though the first half, worryingly for Barca, with what looked to be a knee injury.

• 
  78

  5

  4.00

  Andrés Iniesta Luján

  A sublime opening goal crashed in off the post, and his run and shot was saved by Asenjo, allowing Pedro to tap home. Hard-working, skillful, masterful.

• 
  47

  3

  3.50

  Busquets

  His work-rate in central midfield is often integral to winning back possession, and although he was hardly overworked, remained an accomplished figure. Still has a tendency to jump into a tackle, however, which led to Malaga pulling a goal back.

• 
  72

  5

  3.50

  Xavi

  Almost scored a fantastic effort that cannoned back off the crossbar, but besides that his passing was at his usual impeccable best.

• 
  59

  2

  3.50

  Pedro

  Netted his tenth goal in ten games, reacting fastest to a save from Asenjo to pounce and poke the ball home. His closing down and pressing in the final third remains unparalleled.

• 
  103

  9

  4.50

  David Villa Top of the Match

  Worked the Malaga back line with his constant movement, and took his goals superbly well, sliding the ball through Asenjo's legs for number one, then dancing round the keeper to complete his double in the second half.

• 
  106

  10

  3.50

  Lionel Messi

  A reasonably quiet night in front of goal for the Argentine, with no real goalscoring opportunity, but he still played a prominent part in Villa and Pedro's goals in the first half, and as always was a pleasure to watch.

Substitutions

• 
  36

  3

  0.00

  Adriano

  Came on in the first half for injured Dani Alves, and did well to replace the Brazilian's running ability.

• 
  24

  14

  0.00

  Bojan Krkic

  Came on in the second half and low shot was well saved by Asenjo.

Malaga

2.64

• 
  7

  7

  3.00

  Sergio Asenjo

  Made good saves from Pedro, Bojan, and Iniesta, but was not protected enough by his defence and was helpless at the four goals he conceded.

• 
  5

  4

  3.00

  Manolo

  Made a number of crucial interceptions in the match, but Barca attacked on so many occasions, that he simply could not stop them breaking through every time.

• 
  4

  3

  2.50

  Patrick Mtiliga

  Was dominant aerially but struggled with the pace and movement of Barcelona's attackers, and in the end he succumbed to their superiority.

• 
  3

  4

  3.00

  Weligton

  Reduced to fouling Messi and Villa whenever they came into his vicinity, and was not good enough to keep them at bay.

• 
  10

  5

  3.00

  Martín Demichelis

  A baptism of fire for the Argentine in his first away match for his club, and at some points he may have wished he had stayed in Germany.

• 
  11

  3

  2.50

  Duda

  Stunning free kick in the second half ultimately proved to be nothing but a brief respite from Barca's relentless attacks.

• 
  1

  5

  2.50

  Apoño

  The experienced midfielder could not cope with the speed of movement of Barcelona's inter-changing forwards, and they passed him out of the match.

• 
  2

  4

  3.00

  Camacho

  The former Atletico Madrid midfielder sometimes looked lost, but it was to be expected given he has barely played top-flight football recently and the Camp Nou is not the best place to re-acquaint yourself with La Liga.

• 
  2

  3

  3.00

  Vincenzo Maresca

  The Italian, too, has not played much football and was frustrated by the way he couldn't keep up and track Barca's runs from deep, eventually resorting to petty fouls.

• 
  7

  6

  2.00

  Quincy Owusu-Abeyie Flop of the Match

  The striker did not link well with Baptista and became isolated, and was unsurprisingly replaced in the second half.

• 
  5

  6

  2.50

  Julio Baptista

  The former Real Madrid attacker has had good experiences at the Camp Nou in previous seasons, but tonight he barely managed to touch the ball in the final third.

Substitutions

• 
  1

  3

  2.00

  Recio

  Came on in the last ten minutes of the match, but could not influence proceedings.

• 
  2

  3

  2.50

  Eliseu

  Came on for Maresca in the second period but had little impact on the match with Barcelona already well ahead.

• 
  2

  3

  2.50

  Rondón

  Came on to lead the attack but got little change from Puyol and Pique in the closing stages.