BARCELONA: Brazil winger Raphinha scored a hat-trick as Barcelona thrashed Real Valladolid 7-0 on Saturday to make it four wins from four in La Liga under new coach Hansi Flick.
While bitter rivals Real Madrid have stumbled early following the much-trumpeted arrival of Kylian Mbappe, Barcelona are off to a flying start despite their continued financial difficulties.
They are also missing Frenkie de Jong, Gavi and Ronald Araujo but have a maximum 12 points heading into the international break, leaving them seven clear of Madrid who face Real Betis on Sunday.
“We’re growing as a team. I think it’s a very good start to the season,” said Barcelona captain Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
“I’m proud of how things are going... hopefully we can continue like that in the next weeks.”
Barcelona’s best start to a La Liga campaign came in 2013-14 when they started the season with eight straight wins, although they were pipped to the title that year by Atletico Madrid.
Raphinha opened the scoring for Barcelona at the Olympic Stadium on 20 minutes as he chested down a pass from Pau Cubarsi and flicked elegantly into the far corner with the outside of his left boot.
Robert Lewandowski soon doubled the lead when he latched onto a ball through from Lamine Yamal and squeezed a shot past Valladolid goalkeeper Karl Hein, on loan from Arsenal.
Jules Kounde made it three before half-time when a corner dropped to the France defender inside the area and he stabbed into the top corner while off-balance.
Raphinha had a simple tap-in from close range just past the hour, with Lewandowski and Yamal involved before the ball broke kindly for the Brazilian.
He completed his treble on 72 minutes following a brilliant burst forward from Yamal, who then slid through a delightful pass for Raphinha to stroke home.
Dani Olmo, who got the winner midweek at Rayo Vallecano, on his debut, struck with his final touch after twice hitting the post and having a goal disallowed for offside.
The Spain international danced past a series of defenders and rolled in Barcelona’s sixth. He missed Barcelona’s first two games this term with the club unable to register him as they struggled to meet La Liga’s strict financial rules.
Raphinha rounded off a glittering performance with the assist for Ferran Torres as Barcelona hit a seventh, fizzing in a cross from the left for the substitute to steer home in clinical fashion.
Atletico snatched a 1-0 victory away to Athletic Bilbao as Angel Correa scored in stoppage time to send Diego Simeone’s side up to second, four points adrift of Barcelona.
Espanyol came from behind to win 2-1 at home to Rayo Vallecano with Tottenham loanee Alejo Veliz striking in the sixth minute of added time.
Ayoze Perez’s equalizer ensured Villarreal remained unbeaten, but they had to settle for a 1-1 draw against a Valencia side that had lost each of their first three games.
Mallorca picked up their first win of the season by beating Leganes 1-0.
Raphinha bags hat-trick as Barca trounce Valladolid in La Liga
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Raphinha bags hat-trick as Barca trounce Valladolid in La Liga
- Raphinha opened the scoring for Barcelona at the Olympic Stadium on 20 minutes as he chested down a pass from Pau Cubarsi and flicked elegantly into the far corner with the outside of his left boot
Al-Hilal widen gap on Al-Nassr ahead of Capital Derby
- Al-Hilal defeat Al-Hazem 3-0 in the opening match of Matchday 14
- Al-Nassr succumb to a 2-1 home defeat against Al-Qadsiah to fall four points behind the league leaders
RIYADH: Just a few weeks ago, Al-Nassr were cruising at the top of the Saudi Pro League. Ten consecutive victories had put Jorge Jesus’ side firmly in control, with momentum building toward the Capital Derby against Al-Hilal on January 12.
Fast forward a few weeks, and the picture has shifted dramatically. Al-Nassr now trail Al-Hilal in the standings, with even a derby victory next week no longer enough to reclaim top spot.
Al-Hilal hosted Al-Hazem in the opening fixture of Matchday 14 at Kingdom Arena, knowing that victory would guarantee a cushion ahead of their Riyadh rivals going into Monday’s showdown.
Simone Inzaghi’s side, after an uneven start to the season that saw them drop points to Al-Ahli and Al-Qadsiah, have since surged into form. A nine-game winning streak had already put pressure on Al-Nassr, whose own run ended weeks earlier when Georginio Wijnaldum’s brace for Al-Ettifaq halted their perfect start.
Against Al-Hazem, Al-Hilal played with control rather than with urgency. Salem Al-Dawsari returned to the starting XI, but with a congested fixture list, Inzaghi carefully managed his squad.
Al-Hazem offered moments of resistance, but were no match for the Blues on the night. Rúben Neves delivered a sublime long ball from deep to Sergej Milinković-Savić, who headed home the opener in the 29th minute.
Neves then launched the fans off their seats in the 56th minute, unleashing a thunderous strike from outside the box that crashed off the bar and in to double the lead.
Darwin Núñez would seal the win for the league leaders, tapping home Kaio Cesar’s low cross in the 90th minute to secure Al-Hilal’s tenth consecutive victory.
Less than 20 kilometres away at Al-Awwal Park, Al-Nassr welcomed Al-Qadsiah in the weekend’s headliner — a stern test for Brendan Rodgers in his early weeks with the Eastern Province side.
Unlike previous meetings, the first half was relatively subdued. Al-Nassr dropped their usual high press, wary of Julián Quiñones’s threat in behind, and focused on containment. Their attempts to halt the Mexican forward ultimately came undone in the second half.
With goalkeeper Nawaf Al-Aqidi pushed high to receive the ball, his clearance fell straight to Quiñones, who scored into an empty net in the 51st minute.
Fifteen minutes later, Quiñones was involved again. Pressuring Aiman Yahya into a turnover, he squared the ball for Mateo Retegui, whose initial effort was saved before Nahitan Nández converted the rebound.
Al-Nassr were handed a lifeline in the 79th minute when a handball inside the Al-Qadsiah box resulted in a penalty, calmly dispatched by Cristiano Ronaldo for his 14th league goal of the season.
Despite a late push, Al-Nassr could not find an equaliser. Ahmed Al-Kassar stood firm in goal as Al-Qadsiah resisted sustained pressure to secure a valuable 2-1 victory.
In the day’s third fixture, Al-Ettifaq nearly let a commanding 4-0 lead slip against last-placed Al-Najma, conceding three goals in the final 20 minutes of the game before holding on for a dramatic 4-3 wn.
Saudi Pro League action resumes on Friday, with Al-Khaleej hosting Damac at 4:10pm, Al-Taawoun facing Al-Shabab at 6:05pm, and Al-Ittihad travelling to Al-Kholood for the evening kick-off at 8:30pm.
