Barcelona Triumphs Over Espanyol, Extends La Liga Lead to Nine Points
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La Liga leaders FC Barcelona continued their dominant season under head coach Hansi Flick, comfortably defeating city rivals Espanyol 3-1 and extending their lead at the top of the table to nine points over Real Madrid.
Following their stunning victory in last week’s El Clasico, Barcelona once again showcased their powerful attack, with standout performances from young talents Lamine Yamal and Marc Casado. In the 12th minute, Yamal delivered a beautifully curled cross that found Dani Olmo, who converted it off the crossbar to open the scoring.
Only minutes later, Casado set up captain Raphinha with a perfectly timed pass behind the Espanyol defense, allowing him to finish smoothly and put Barcelona up 2-0.
Espanyol saw two potential goals disallowed for offside by VAR, adding to their frustration as Barcelona’s relentless play pressed on. Dani Olmo secured his brace before halftime, drilling a powerful shot from the edge of the box to extend the lead to 3-0.
Espanyol did manage to pull one back through captain Javi Puado, who found the net in the second half. However, the fourth-bottom team could not overcome their long-standing struggles against Barcelona, extending their winless run to 27 consecutive derbies against the Catalan giants.
With this victory, Barcelona maintains an impressive record under Flick, with 11 wins in 12 La Liga games. The team has scored 24 goals in their last six matches and remains unbeaten in all competitions since late September. Barcelona now prepares to carry their winning momentum into their upcoming Champions League match against Red Star Belgrade on Wednesday.
In other La Liga action, Atletico Madrid claimed a 2-0 victory over Las Palmas, inching closer to Real Madrid in the standings.
