Player Ratings: Barcelona 4-0 Zaragoza

Conceded two in his last Barcelona game, but had nothing to do in this match. Watched one Lafita effort sail just wide, but was otherwise a spectator.

Turned once by Lafita in Zaragoza's best chance of the evening. Also wasted a flowing team move with a poor finish midway through the first half, but linked up well with Messi on occasions and was comfortable at the back.

Gave Barca the lead as he headed home unmarked, made one timely tackle later on and brought the ball out of defense with a fine run before the break. Was booked for handball and lost sight of Lafita once, but a classy performance overall.

Barca fans will be happy to see their skipper back in the side and he is looking ever more comfortable, too. Scored his team's third goal, looked solid and made one typically brave clearance with Micael waiting to pounce in the second half.

Not quite at his brilliant best this season and wasn't involved nearly as much as he would have liked, but remains an important outlet down the right and was full of running.

Got in some good positions and the ball almost fell for him in the area early on. Hard-working as a defensive midfielder in the absence of Busquets and Mascherano, and his passing was neat and tidy, too.

His excellent free kick gave Pique the easiest of finishes to put Barca ahead. Shot wide with a direct effort later in the first half and, as usual, was at the heart of much of his side's best play before he was replaced shortly after the break, with the midweek game at AC Milan in mind.

As expected, Messi wanted to play and as expected, he did. And he showed no signs of fatigue from the international break as he caused havoc early on. Came close with one brilliant individual effort and was also denied by Roberto early on, but eventually got his goal before the break and remained a threat in the second half.

Still finding his way in this side, the Chilean showed some neat touches and ran all night, but he is still not quite on the same wavelength as his teammates. Shot straight at Roberto with one good chance after 38 minutes.

Another fine performance from the young winger, who set up Villa's goal with an excellent run to the byline and a cross with 15 minutes left. Also shot wide in the last minute and wowed the crowd with a Zidane-style 'roulette' in midfield late in the game.

Could do little to stop Barca running away with it but made several brilliant stops in the first half, notably from Messi and Cesc. Left exposed by his defenders and not really at fault for any of the goals. Perhaps could have come out for the first as Pique was allowed to head home unmarked from a Xavi free kick.

Made a couple of good last ditch interventions early on but was exposed and unable to deal with Barca's intense attacking play. Never looked comfortable.

Given a tough time by Cuenca and Messi as Barca attacked down the right, but made one excellent sliding challenge to clear the danger in the first half. Replaced by Abraham with 10 minutes left.

Offered little protection from a defensive midfield position, even as he looked to exert a more physical presence. And he gave Zaragoza very little going forward either.

The midfielder continues to play at right back, even though it's clearly not his best position. Never looked at ease there, gave away the free kick for the first goal and was booked for a foul on Alexis.

A hard worker in defensive midfield, Ponzio nevertheless had his work cut out against a far superior Barca side and was unable to offer sufficient help to his defense as he was overrun in the center of the park. Didn't look comfortable in possession, either.

Didn't see much of the ball out on the left and was forced to track back and help out in defense for most of the evening. Some neat touches and plenty of toil, but didn't make a real impact.

A forgettable performance from the Mexican, who failed to impress and offered no real outlet on the right. Deservedly hauled off at the break following a miserable 45 minutes in which he did nothing but lose the ball.

One of the few players to have beaten Barca at Camp Nou (as an Espanyol player), Luis Garcia tried to will his side forward on the break early on, but saw less and less of the ball and was replaced at the interval.

Isolated in attack and did little apart from win a corner. Linked up once or twice with Lafita after the break, but little else.