Barcelona continued their excellent early-season form under Hansi Flick as the La Liga leaders swept aside city rivals Espanyol to move nine points clear of Real Madrid. Fresh from thrashing Real in their El Clasico encounter last week, Barca’s attacking play was again sensational at times, with teenage winger Lamine Yamal once more looking a class above his contemporaries.
Marc Casado played an equally good ball in behind the Espanyol defence, where captain Raphinha timed his run perfectly to clip the ball home.
Defensively, Barca’s incredibly high line once again made life interesting, with Espanyol having two goals ruled out for narrow offside calls.
Olmo got his second with a thumping shot from the edge of the area to put Barca 3-0 up.
Captain Javi Puado, though, swept in at the far post 18 minutes after the break to reduce the deficit.
Espanyol improved as Barcelona shut down, but the fourth-bottom side were second best throughout as their dismal derby record continued.
Flick’s side visit Red Star Belgrade in the Champions League on Wednesday and will look to maintain this wonderful run of form.
Credit: bbc.com
