Barcelona maintained their perfect start to the La Liga season on Sunday, securing a hard-fought 4-2 victory over Levante in Valencia. Lamine Yamal starred for the visitors, scoring twice to help his side extend their winning streak to five league matches, leaving them three points clear of Real Madrid at the top of the table.
The scoring began just five minutes into the match when 19-year-old Xavi Espart netted his first senior goal, firing into the net from the edge of the box following a deflection. Barcelona doubled their lead in the 19th minute through a precise team effort: Fermin Lopez delivered a through ball to Raphinha, who expertly squared it for an unmarked Yamal to finish.
Hansi Flick’s squad entered the second half with momentum, and within 42 seconds of the restart, Yamal earned a penalty after being fouled by Aissa Mandi. He converted the spot kick himself, marking his third double of the campaign. Although Levante threatened to stage a comeback with an hour played, a goal-line clearance by Andreas Christensen and a block from Pau Cubarsi kept the hosts at bay.
The match grew tense in the final minutes. An errant pass from Espart in the 79th minute allowed Ivan Romero to round goalkeeper Joan Garcia and score. Levante further closed the gap in the 88th minute when Roger Brugue navigated through the Barcelona defense to make it 3-2. However, Karim Adeyemi sealed the result in the 93rd minute with a mazy run and clinical finish, ending Levante’s rally.
Elsewhere in La Liga, Atletico Madrid returned to winning ways with a 3-0 victory over Real Sociedad, overcoming the absence of injured key players Julian Alvarez and Pablo Barrios. After a scoreless deadlock, Alejandro Grimaldo broke the tension with an 84th-minute penalty.
The win was cemented late in the match as Jonathan David scored on a counter-attack just six minutes after the opener. Giuliano Simeone added a third goal in the 95th minute, securing the points for Atletico after their previous two-game losing streak.
Additional matches saw Malaga rescue a 1-1 draw against a dominant Celta Vigo at Balaidos. Similarly, Deportivo A Coruna salvaged a point in their own 1-1 draw with Getafe, recovering after falling behind in the second half. The report also notes that applying some pressure of their own, and despite failing to create a clear opening, ended the half with six attempts to Barcelona’s three, levante rallied after their early struggles. The report also notes that who appeared to be limping, was withdrawn by Barcelona manager Hansi Flick at half-time and replaced by Andreas Christensen, gerard Martin. The report also notes that nine minutes later, Roger Brugue burst through multiple Barcelona challenges to reduce the deficit to one goal as what looked like a comfortable Barcelona win threatened to turn into a heroic Levante comeback. The report also notes that chanting “Levante” as the German celebrated his goal, the home crowd nevertheless showed their appreciation for the fighting spirit shown by their side. The report also notes that despite their late wobble, Barcelona secured a sixth successive win in all competitions, with Rodri’s assured midfield display and captain Raphinha’s relentless running central to their success.
