It didn’t take lengthy for Barcelona’s offense to regain its scoring contact.
After being held to a disappointing scoreless draw with Galatasaray within the first leg of the spherical of 16 of the Europa League, Barcelona scored 3 targets in not up to half-hour Sunday en path to a comfy 4-0 win over Osasuna within the Spanish league.
Ferran Torres discovered the online two times and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Riqui Puig added a purpose every to stay the Catalan membership in 3rd position. It has the similar 51 issues as Atletico Madrid however leads at the head-to-head tiebreaker. Barcelona additionally has a recreation in hand in comparison to the protecting champions.
Barcelona and Atletico path second-place Sevilla through 5 issues. League chief Actual Madrid, which visits relegation-threatened Mallorca on Monday, is 12 issues forward of Barcelona and Atletico.
Madrid hosts Barcelona subsequent Sunday on the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
Barcelona had scored 14 targets in its final 4 suits in all competitions sooner than the 0-0 house draw in opposition to Galatasaray on Thursday.
“We didn’t do a just right process the opposite day and we comprehend it,” Torres mentioned. “However as of late the staff replied properly. Whilst you stay developing probabilities, the ball will stay stepping into.”
Torres opened the scoring Sunday through changing a 14th-minute penalty kick and added to the lead seven mins later from within the house after a pleasing thru ball through Ousmane Dembele.
Dembele additionally arrange the 3rd purpose through Aubameyang within the twenty seventh, creating a well-placed move into the field from the correct flank, and the fourth through Puig within the seventy fifth.
Barcelona defender Gerard Pique, making his 600th look with the membership, had a purpose disallowed for offside within the fifty fifth.
Xavi Hernandez’s staff is unbeaten in 10 directly video games, since a loss at Athletic Bilbao within the spherical of 16 of the Copa del Rey in January.
“We had a letdown in depth in opposition to Galatasaray and paid for it,” Xavi mentioned. “As of late it used to be other. It used to be one in all our highest suits and it offers us extra self assurance going ahead.”
Barcelona ladies’s staff, which clinched its 3rd directly league name previous within the day, used to be commemorated sooner than the fit on the Camp Nou Stadium.
SEVILLA HELD
Sevilla used to be held once more in its pursuit of Madrid with a 1-1 draw at Rayo Vallecano on Sunday, and is seven issues off the lead.
It used to be the second one consecutive league draw for Sevilla, and 6th in its final 8 suits within the pageant. Julen Lopetegui’s staff prolonged its unbeaten streak within the league to fourteen suits, since a loss at Madrid in November. It hasn’t received in 4 in an instant video games, drawing they all.
Bebe put the hosts forward early in the second one part and Thomas Delaney equalized for Sevilla within the 63rd.
Sevilla had a penalty awarded in the second one part nevertheless it used to be reversed through video evaluation. It additionally had a purpose disallowed through VAR early within the first part.
Rayo, sitting in thirteenth position, hasn’t received in its final 9 league suits, with seven losses in that run.
Veteran Colombia striker Radamel Falcao overlooked its 3rd directly recreation with Rayo on account of an harm.
BETIS REBOUND
Betis ended a five-game winless streak in all competitions with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Athletic.
The house win stored Manuel Pellegrini’s staff in 5th position, two issues in the back of Barcelona and Atletico.
Borja Iglesias scored a Twentieth-minute winner for Betis, which performed the overall mins with 10 males as Nabil Fekir used to be despatched off with a directly crimson card within the eightieth.
It used to be the 3rd loss in 5 league video games for Athletic, which stayed in 8th position and extra in the back of the Eu qualification puts.
SOCIEDAD WIN AGAIN
Martin Zubimendi scored a Seventieth-minute winner as Actual Sociedad beat Basque Nation rival Alaves 1-0 at house for its 3rd win in 4 suits to stick in 6th position and in competition for the Eu puts.
Sociedad used to be coming off a 4-1 loss at league chief Madrid.
Alaves, winless in 4 suits, stayed second-to-last, 3 issues from protection.