Barcelona Honored in Andalusia and Closes the Gap with Madrid
Lopes and Lewandowski, Photo: Beta/AP Photo/Jose Breton
Barcelona capitalized on the recent draw between Real Madrid and Atletico by achieving a convincing away victory over Sevilla (4:1), positioning themselves closer to the top of the standings.
Following the 23rd round, Real Madrid sits with a two-point lead, while Atletico holds a one-point advantage over Barcelona.
The match at the “Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan” stadium got off to an excellent start for the visitors; in the seventh minute, Rafinha delivered a brilliant cross into the box, and Martinez laid it off to the far post for Robert Lewandowski, who netted the opener.
The home side responded quickly, as Saul evaded the offside trap and set up Vargas for the equalizer just one minute later.
In added time of the first half, Lukebakio squandered a golden opportunity to give Sevilla the lead. However, the second half began in spectacular fashion for Barcelona, with Fermin Lopes coming off the bench and scoring in the 46th minute to regain the advantage.
Sevilla attempted to level the score soon after, but their goal was disallowed for offside due to Vargas’s positioning. Barcelona continued their momentum as Rafinha struck again with a stunning long-range effort from about 55 meters out in the 20th minute, although they faced a setback seven minutes later with Lopes receiving a red card.
Despite being a man down, Hansi Flick’s squad managed to extend their lead, with Garcia finding the back of the net to conclude the match at 4:1.
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