Barcelona to add Sevilla to the list of victims
Madrid – AFP – Barcelona, the league leaders and defending champions, aim to add Sevilla to their list of victims this season when they visit the Andalusian side on Saturday in Matchday 7 of the Spanish La Liga.
The Catalan club enters the clash against fourth-placed Sevilla (13 points) with significant momentum, having continued their perfect league start under the guidance of Brazilian star Raphinha, who scored a hat-trick in a crushing 7-2 victory over Racing Santander in Matchday 6.
Raphinha scored his “hat-trick” in the 25th and 67th minutes from penalties and in the 42nd minute, raising his tally to nine goals to top the league’s scoring charts. Portuguese João Cancelo (8th minute), Aiser Villalibre (36th minute, an own goal), Brazilian Gabriel Jesus (79th minute), and Lamine Yamal (89th minute) scored the other four goals for Barcelona. For Santander, Senegalese Magaye Gueye (30th minute) and Moroccan Yasser Zebiri (65th minute) found the net.
Barcelona secured their sixth consecutive win in La Liga and their seventh consecutive victory across all competitions, extending their lead at the top of the table to 18 points, three points ahead of rivals Real Madrid in second place.
This marks the first time Barcelona, under German manager Hansi Flick, have started a season with seven consecutive victories. The club had previously achieved six consecutive wins at the start of a season on three occasions (1929-1930, 1960-1961, and 2018-2019).
However, the Catalan club’s joy was dampened by an injury to goalkeeper Juan Garcia, who suffered a meniscus injury to his right knee during the match and is expected to be sidelined for approximately three weeks.
On the other hand, Sevilla returned with all three points from their match against a numerically reduced Deportivo La Coruña, winning 1-0 thanks to a goal from striker Miguel Sierra (52nd minute), securing their fourth league victory. They hope not to be an easy target for Barcelona.
In another match, Atlético Madrid displayed their attacking prowess despite the absence of Argentine Julián Álvarez due to injury, defeating Osasuna 4-0. Goals for Atlético were scored by Canadian Jonathan David (24th minute), South Korean Lee Kang-in (54th minute), Frenchman Robin Le Normand (63rd minute), and Alex Baena (82nd minute). Atlético moved to 13 points, temporarily moving up to third place.
The victory comes at an ideal time, ahead of their upcoming “Capital Derby” against their arch-rivals and neighbors Real Madrid next Sunday.
