Barcelona opened up a three-point lead on the high of La Liga after beating Catalan rivals Girona 4-1 on Sunday afternoon.
Barca avenged their pair of defeats to Michel’s facet final season by placing 4 previous Girona in a pair of victories this time period. Whereas the guests equalised at first of the second half, they struggled to get a foothold in proceedings because the red-hot hosts dominated.
Hansi Flick’s facet thus responded to Actual Madrid’s 3-2 victory over Leganes on Saturday forward of the second leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final towards Atleti in midweek.
How the sport unfolded
Flick rotated once more on Sunday afternoon off the again of Thursday’s win over Osasuna, with Barcelona’s daunting April schedule requiring the extremities of the German’s squad.
Barca’s purpose was the return of their three-point benefit on the high of La Liga with regional neighbours Girona in attendance, and the hosts began the competition with the intention of wrapping issues up early.
After Viktor Tsygankov fired an effort over for the guests, Lamine Yamal was on the coronary heart of Barca’s greatest moments within the opening exchanges, which did not return a objective. Robert Lewandowski and Yamal each had efforts saved by Paulo Gazzaniga earlier than the Argentine goalkeeper made a wonderful cease to stop Ronald Araujo’s header from giving Barcelona the lead.
The hosts had been completely dominant towards a facet that are not used to enjoying with out the ball. Girona’s common possession share is third-highest in La Liga this season, however they had been restricted to only 29% of the ball within the opening interval. The guests did settle defensively regardless of their territorial inferiority, however Barca’s stress finally informed on the finish of the opening interval when Ladislav Krejci deflected Yamal’s free-kick past a helpess Gazzaniga.
A procession was anticipated after the restart, however Girona ensured Barca must work for all three factors. A uncommon urgent sequence from the guests led to their unlikely equaliser, with Arnaut Danjuma ending nicely after receivng Daley Blind’s pinpoint move.
Nonetheless, it did not take Barcelona lengthy to retake the lead. Their beforehand dormant left-hand facet turned up on the hour mark, with Gavi’s cross for Fermin Lopez resulting in a second of genius poaching work from Lewandowski, who transformed acrobatically from shut vary.
Girona’s greatest interval of the competition arrived after Barca’s second objective, as they began to have success accessing Miguel Gutierrez and Danjuma in behind an aggressive line of defense. Nonetheless, a masterful evasion of stress from Frenkie de Jong in midfield ended the competition. The Dutchman surged ahead and teed up Lewandowski for his second.
The hosts refused to relaxation on their laurels within the aftermath, and so they had been stressed of their quest to attain late on. Substitute Ferran Torres added a fourth, whereas Yamal and Alejandro Balde got here near scoring a fifth.
Try the participant rankings from Barcelona 4-1 Girona.
Robert Lewandowski proved towards Atletico Madrid earlier than the break that even throughout his twilight years, he solely wants a yard of house.
The striker has been glorious this season after a dip in Xavi’s ultimate yr, with the veteran performing a pivotal focus perform which has allowed Raphinha to thrive. Nonetheless, Lewandowski stays Barca’s major goal-getter, and he responded to Kylian Mbappe’s brace on Saturday by scoring twice right here.
He hadn’t seen an excessive amount of of Gazzaniga’s objective earlier than he discovered the again of the online with the craftiest of finishes from shut vary to beat Girona’s primary. The Pole’s second owed a lot to De Jong’s brilliance in the midst of the park, however his strike was nonetheless emphatic.
His twenty fourth and twenty fifth objectives of the La Liga season means Lewandowski’s benefit over Mbappe within the race for the Pichichi Trophy stays three. The distinction is not unassailable, however the Frenchman has work to do to stop Lewandowski from changing into the 18th multi-time Pichichi winner.
Barcelona have been one of the watchable groups in Europe this season, with their synergy in possession making for excellent mixture play. The hosts doubtlessly had moments on Sunday of masterful cohesion in possession, and Yamal was weaving his magic wand down the proper.
Nonetheless, within the absence of Raphinha and Alejandro Balde down the left flank, Barca had been nearly too reliant on {the teenager}. A lot of their work targeted down the proper, with Jules Kounde providing helpful surges from full-back to additional overwhelm Girona’s left facet. Whereas the pair labored tremendously nicely and Yamal was so arduous to cease one-on-one, the absence of a left flank meant Barca weren’t fairly so scintillating towards their Catalan neighbours.
Gerard Martin deputised for Balde however by no means seemed positive of himself and was reluctant to get excessive up the pitch within the opening interval. With Gavi drifting off the left to work alongside Fermin Lopez between the strains, Barca desperately wanted Martin to perform as an auxiliary winger, however the younger defender seemed to be a staggering downgrade to Balde earlier than rising into the competition throughout its latter phases.
Regardless of their points, it was the left flankers who mixed to create the prospect which led to Barca’s second objective. There was an enchancment within the second half, with the arrival of Ferran Torres supplying larger steadiness within the ultimate third.
Whereas Pedri has been a relentless in the midst of the park for Barcelona this season, there’s been a relentless stream of rotation alongside him. La Masia graduate Marc Casado was the star of the primary half of 2024/25, however Frenkie de Jong has rediscovered his best type within the new yr.
Casado’s season is over because of an ACL tear suffered earlier than the worldwide break, whereas De Jong was rested on Sunday. Pedri remained within the XI, however he was partnered by Eric Garcia.
This was simply his eighth La Liga begin of the season – the vast majority of which have arrived in midfield. After breaking out as a centre-back at Manchester Metropolis and impressing in Michel’s defence final season, it now seems as if Garcia’s future lies in a extra superior place, actually at Barcelona.
He is as regular as they arrive, however the Spaniard is a noticeably clever footballer who’s conscious of his limitations. He is greater than prepared to let the extra gifted stars round him thrive, and that is what Garcia was glorious at on Sunday. Stationed on the base of midfield, Garcia performed a key function in guaranteeing Barcelona sustained stress all through.
Barca’s counter-pressing was excellent, however Garcia’s astute positioning and capability to win duels additionally did not enable Girona to interrupt. This was his a centesimal outing in Blaugrana colors, and it could nicely have been considered one of his greatest performances.
