Continuation of the 12th day of La Liga this Sunday. While Real Madrid saw its match against Valencia logically canceled due to the enormous bad weather which hit several regions of Spain, the meeting between FC Barcelona and Espanyol in the Catalan derby was maintained. The opportunity for the Blaugranas to continue their very good current series and confirm their formidable domination in La Liga. Before the match, still at the Montjuic stadium, the club took the opportunity to present Aitana Bonmati’s Women’s Ballon d’Or, Lamine Yamal’s Kopa trophy and Robert Lewandowski’s trophy for best player of the month in La Liga. The two Barcelona attackers obviously started this Sunday, as did Dani Olmo and Raphinha.
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Facing a 17th place Espanyol team at kick-off, FC Barcelona did not joke at all and showed once again that it had become a real steamroller which counts world-class players in its ranks . The festival started quickly with a sublime goal from Dani Olmo (12th). The former Leipzig striker took on a marvelous ball from Lamine Yamal with first intention. On his right lane, the 17-year-old attacker released a pancake with the outside of his foot to launch Olmo perfectly. A few minutes later, it was around Raphinha to go for his goal.
Two offside goals for Espanyol
The Brazilian took advantage, here too, of an exceptional opening from Marc Casado in the heart of the game to deceive the opposing goalkeeper with a subtle lob (23rd). He thus scored his 11th goal of the season (and 8 assists in 14 matches). With crazy confidence, the Barcelona team completely disgusted their opponent with a series of small bridges, roulettes and other impressive technical gestures. At the half-hour mark, Dani Olmo scored twice by firing a powerful shot from outside the area (3-0, 31st). Clear and uncontested score. For their part, Espanyol tried as best they could to attack and tried to take advantage of the relaxation of their opponents.
FC Barcelona, with its style from the start of the season, mastered the offside trap to perfection. As against Real Madrid, Barça conceded two goals but, each time, the VAR intervened to cancel them due to a very slight offside position. Finally at the hour mark, Robert Lewandowski’s teammates collapsed for good as Javi Puado’s goal was validated (3-1, 61st). We could then expect a more open end to the match, but despite a drop in performance from Barça, Espanyol did not take advantage of it. The Blaugranas have another victory and consolidate their leadership of La Liga. Espanyol confirms its very complicated start to the season.
