La Liga: Barcelona Continues Strong Form, Atlético Secures Seventh Win

Defending champions Barcelona prepared for their French rivals Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League with a strong performance, defeating hosts Real Betis 5-2 to extend their lead at the top of the table to five points over second-placed Atletico Madrid, who secured a late victory against Espanyol on Saturday in the ninth round of the Spanish La Liga.

Led by German coach Hansi Flick and young star Lamine Yamal, Barcelona delivered a powerful display in their 13th consecutive victory across all competitions.

The Catalan side scored four goals for the second consecutive match, following their 4-1 win over Turkish club Galatasaray on Tuesday. Notably, they have not exited any of their last nine matches with fewer than three goals.

This time, the title holders’ four-goal haul was shared by Yamal (10th minute), Rodri (41st), Brazilian Gabriel Jesus (51st), and substitutes Eric Garcia (62nd) and Dani Olmo (81st). Betis responded with two goals through Argentine Valentin Gomez (27th) and Moroccan Abdessamad Ezzejlouli (53rd), while their teammate Uruguayan Facundo Bernal was sent off (54th).

Barcelona set a new club record for the most consecutive wins at the start of a La Liga season, also equaling the absolute record of nine straight victories, previously held by Real Madrid in the 1968-1969 season.

Rodri told DAZN: “The team once again showed its attacking capabilities, but it is also true that we are giving away too many gifts to our opponents. Perhaps this is another aspect we need to improve.”

The match also provided an opportunity for Brazilian winger Raphinha to return to the pitch after missing two games due to injury. He came on as a substitute in the second half, just in time ahead of Tuesday’s clash with defending champions Saint-Germain in Matchday 3 of the Champions League’s new unified league phase.

At La Cartuja stadium, ten minutes after the opening whistle, Yamal opened the scoring with a brilliant strike from the edge of the box, netting his eighth goal of the La Liga season. According to Opta, he became the first Spanish player to score this many goals in the first nine matches of a season since Diego Costa with Atletico Madrid in 2013-2014.

He also became the second-highest scorer from outside the penalty area in La Liga since the 2023-2024 season, with ten goals, trailing only Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappe by one goal.

However, Gomez equalized with a header, capitalizing on a cross from Pablo Fornals (27th minute).

Rodri restored Barcelona’s lead with a header after rising to meet a corner kick taken by Fermin Lopez (41st), marking his first goal in a Barcelona shirt since his summer transfer from English club Manchester City.

The home side believed they had equalized again when Argentine Giovani de Silvestre scored a stunning volley from outside the box (43rd minute), but the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) ruled out the goal for a handball by Colombian Cuchou Hernandez approximately 18 seconds earlier.

In the second half, Barcelona extended their lead through Jesus, who tapped into an empty net after goalkeeper Alvaro Valles had come out to stop Yamal, who provided the assist (51st minute).

However, Ezzejlouli reduced the deficit again after a quick counterattack and a long pass from De Silvestre that put him in a one-on-one situation with Joan Garcia, who failed to stop his shot (53rd minute).

The joy did not last long for Betis, as Bernal headed into Yamal and received a straight red card (54th minute).

Garcia capitalized on the numerical advantage, scoring the fourth goal and ending Betis’ hopes of a comeback with a close-range shot following a header from Eric Garcia after a free-kick was delivered into the box (62nd minute).

Olmo added his name to the scorers’ list with a powerful strike from outside the box (81st minute).

Substitute Alex Baena snatched all three points for Atletico Madrid, scoring the 1-0 winner in the dying moments against their hosts, Espanyol.

Baena netted the match’s only goal after coming on in the 62nd minute, following a counterattack that reached the other substitute, Argentine Julian Alvarez, who laid it off to Baena, who fired a powerful shot from the edge of the penalty area into the net (89th minute).

After the match, the player told DAZN: “They played well defensively, and it was difficult for us to break them down. The good thing about this team is that it continues to believe in its chances until the 90th minute.”

For his part, his Argentine coach Diego Simeone said: “He is a player capable of making a big difference, and he is going through a truly wonderful period.”

This was Atletico’s sixth consecutive victory across all competitions, but their first in four away matches.

In contrast, Espanyol suffered their third defeat in their last four games, leaving them stuck on eight points.

After their hard-fought win over English side Manchester United in the second matchday of the new Champions League league phase earlier in the week, Atletico showed no signs of fatigue and quickly imposed their will in Barcelona.

Possession clearly favored the Madrid side (71%-29%), although their six shots on target before the goal did not pose a major threat.

Villarreal drew nil-nil with Elche, moving the former to nine points and the latter to seven.