Barcelona secured a convincing 5-2 win over Betis, with rising star Lamine Yamal shining with an outstanding performance, scoring a spectacular goal and helping the team set a new club record for wins at the start of a league campaign. Barça coach Flick described Yamal as “the best player in the world at the moment” after the match. Yamal, 19, opened the scoring in the 10th minute with a superb strike from the edge of the box. This victory moves Barcelona to the top of the table, while Betis remain eight points behind the leaders.
Despite Barça’s attacking dominance, Betis briefly equalised with a header from Valentin Gomez. However, Rodri restored Barcelona’s lead, also with a header, from a corner. A second Betis goal from Giovani Lo Celso was disallowed for a handball. In the second half, Gabriel Jesus extended Barça’s advantage after a pass from Yamal, but Betis quickly narrowed the gap through Ez Abde. Immediately after, Betis’s Facundo Bernal was sent off with a red card for a header on Yamal, leaving his team with 10 players. Eric Garcia and Dani Olmo scored Barcelona’s other goals, sealing the win.
Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid, second in the table, secured a narrow 1-0 away win over Espanyol thanks to a late goal from Alex Baena in the 89th minute. Baena, who has shown excellent form since Spain’s World Cup triumph this summer, was praised by coach Diego Simeone as a player with added confidence and strength. It was Atletico’s sixth consecutive win in all competitions. Barcelona will now focus on their Champions League match against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday, while next week they face “El Clasico”.
For Barcelona, this win sets a new club record for the number of victories at the start of a league campaign and equals the overall record of nine wins, set by Real Madrid in the 1968/69 season. Flick’s side have 11 wins from 11 matches in all competitions. Yamal, who hopes to be crowned world’s best player at the Ballon d’Or ceremony in October, was essential to this success. Rodri, another goalscorer, highlighted Yamal’s commitment and game intelligence, beyond his spectacular goals.
Source: France 24 Live News