Barcelona beats Elche 3-0 with goals from Messi and Munir

The headlines will belong to Munir and a reinvigorated Messi but this was a fluid performance from Barca with former Barcelona midfielder and idol Luis Enrique had his name chanted by the Nou Camp, and handed five players their first league starts for the club: new signings Claudio Bravo, Jeremy Mathieu and Ivan Rakitic, plus soccer academy graduates Rafinha Alcantara and Munir.

The game was interrupted in the first minute due to a black cat that raced onto the pitch, but Barça soon took control of the play, demonstrating that Enrique is just as keen on his side dominating possession to dizzying levels as his predecessors were.

The first attempts came from Rakitic who failed to hit the target, and then Munir just within inches of scoring this first ever goal at the Nou Camp midway through the first half, his effort vas applauded by the fans behind the goal.

It was then Andres Iniesta's turn to rattle the bar, while Dani Alves and Lionel Messi both saw their shots miss the target.

Barca finally got the goal they deserved a few minutes before the break. Busquets intercepted a sloppy pass from an Elche defender and then Messi, who needed just one touch to bring the ball under control before sweeping it into the bottom corner with his left foot.

But, Barça had a setback just one minute after scoring, Mascherano was sent off with a red card for bringing down Garry Rodrigues when he was clean through on goal.

Enrique responded sacrificing forward Rafinha in favour of defender Marc Bartra immediately after the break, but his attacking players reacted even more effectively to ensure Barca were in no danger of losing their lead after going a man down.

The second goal came from Rakitic, who played a long ball over the top towards Munir, who waited patiently for it to drop and flicked it into the far corner of the net.

Messi’s second goal, and third of the match, arrived a quarter of an hour after Munir's, was the finest move of the night. The Argentinian attacked down the right and shrugged off four Elche defenders to bring the ball onto his favored left boot and drive it low into the bottom corner.