Barcelona kept pace in La Liga’s title race with another win on Sunday, beating Sevilla 4-1 despite going down to 10 players in the game’s final half hour. La Liga’s golden boot leader Robert Lewandowski opened the scoring in the seventh minute, though Sevilla had their equalizer a minute later courtesy of Ruben Vargas and were able to hold the visitors to a 1-1 scoreline by the break. Barcelona began to build their advantage early in the second half when Fermin Lopez scored a minute into the second half and Raphinha’s goal nine minutes later added a cushion.
Things became slightly complicated for Barcelona when Lopez received a red card in the 62nd minute for a sliding tackle on Djibril Sow, but the lead they built was solid enough to see them to the finish line and Eric Garcia’s 89th minute goal ensured that would be the case.
Here is a look at the major moments from the match.
Moment of the match
Sevilla did well to stifle Barcelona in the first half, but the game tilted in the visitors’ favor quickly after the break. Lopez gets credit for the go-ahead goal but the most memorable part of the sequence came courtesy of Pedri, whose flick over the top meant the ball could land perfectly for Lopez to head it into the back of the net.
Man of the match
Pedri’s assist was just one part of a standout display for the Barcelona midfielder, who was influential in another attack-minded showing for his team. He created five chances and completed 86% of his passes, making eight passes into the final third in a solid display for Hansi Flick’s side.
Wildest moment of the match
Just 16 minutes after scoring the game-winning goal, Lopez got himself into trouble for a hard, sliding tackle on Sow. Lopez was initially shown a yellow but following a VAR check, the referee changed things up and handed him a red card instead.
What the result means for Barcelona
Barcelona sit in third place but are still very much in the thick of the title race – they are one point behind second-place Atletico Madrid and just two points adrift of league leaders Real Madrid.
What’s next
Barcelona resume play next Monday, when they host Rayo Vallecano in La Liga play. The league will be their primary focus for the next several weeks since their second-place finish in the league phase of the UEFA Champions League means they could skip straight to the round of 16.
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