CORNELLÀ DE LLOBREGAT, Spain: A stunning Lamine Yamal strike helped crown Barcelona La Liga champions with a 2-0 win at local rivals Espanyol on Thursday, with victory ensuring Real Madrid cannot catch them at the top of the table.
Yamal’s effort and Fermin Lopez’s goal took Hansi Flick’s side seven points clear of Los Blancos with two matches remaining, to clinch Barcelona’s 28th title and complete a superb domestic treble.
Only the Champions League escaped an exciting young Barca side this season, as they won the league for the second time in six years, at Espanyol’s ground again just as in 2023.
Back then, celebrating Barca players were chased from the field by angry home supporters but this time Espanyol turned on the sprinklers to soak the jubilant visitors, who headed down the tunnel quickly.
Yamal opened the scoring after 53 minutes of a tense derby clash with a brilliant curling effort, before Lopez added another in the 95th minute to secure victory.
Outside the stadium before the match several Espanyol fans were hit by a car which drove into a big crowd, although none were seriously injured and police said it appeared to be an accident.
Barcelona were seconds away from sealing their title triumph on Wednesday but Real Madrid snatched a 95th-minute winner against Mallorca to delay the inevitable.
Flick’s side started slowly in Cornella, with Espanyol, 16th, looking dangerous on the counter-attack and keen to secure their top-flight survival.
Wojciech Szczesny made a fine save to deny Javi Puado who broke through on goal in Espanyol’s best chance of the opening period.
Barca dominated the ball but failed to create any clear opportunities themselves in the first half.
The Catalan giants have often blown teams away this season, approaching a century of goals in La Liga, but with the title on the line and a hostile crowd against them, they needed something special to break through.
That came from 17-year-old wing wizard Yamal, who zipped inside off the right flank and unleashed a rocket into the top corner from outside the box, in a replica of his goal for Spain against France in the Euro 2024 semifinals.
It was the teenager’s eighth La Liga strike of the season but with goals in both matches against rivals Real and also in the visit to face Atletico Madrid, he has a penchant for the big occasion.
Barca’s superb display in Sunday’s Clasico, in which they beat their rivals 4-3 in a thrilling battle, effectively won them the title.
They still had to get it over the line against their neighbors, though, and that became easier when Leandro Cabrera was sent off for an elbow into Yamal’s stomach.
Even though they had a player fewer, Espanyol pressured Barcelona heavily until Lopez drilled past Joan Garcia to end the hosts’ resistance.
Yamal pearl seals Barcelona La Liga title triumph at Espanyol
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Yamal pearl seals Barcelona La Liga title triumph at Espanyol
Spain will host 2030 World Cup final, says RFEF president
- Louzan did not say whether the match would be played at Santiago Bernabeu or Camp Nou
- Once completed in late 2028, the new stadium in Morocco is expected to hold 115,000 spectators
MADRID: Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) President Rafael Louzan has said that Spain will stage the final of the 2030 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by Spain, Portugal and Morocco.
Morocco wants to stage the game in Casablanca at the Grand Stade Hassan II, a huge stadium currently under construction north of the city.
“Spain has proven its organizational capacity over many years. It will be the leader of the 2030 World Cup and the final of that World Cup will be held here,” Louzan said late on Monday at an event organized by the Madrid Sports Press Association.
Louzan did not say whether the match would be played at Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu or Barcelona’s Camp Nou, the two leading candidates.
Once completed in late 2028, the new stadium in Morocco is expected to hold 115,000 spectators. Morocco’s Royal Football Federation (FRMF) President Faouzi Lekjaa last year expressed his wish to see a final against Spain in Casablanca.
Louzan also alluded to the challenges Morocco faced during its hosting of the last Africa Cup of Nations, including the chaotic scenes during the final between Senegal and Morocco this month.
That match, which Senegal won 1-0, was overshadowed by fan disruptions and player protests that temporarily halted play.
“Morocco is really undergoing a transformation in every sense, with magnificent stadiums,” Louzan said. “We must recognize what has been done well. But in the Africa Cup of Nations, we have seen scenes that damage the image of world football.”
FIFA and the Portuguese and Moroccan football federations have not responded to requests for comment on the final’s location.
FIFA told Reuters last year it was premature to decide the venue for the 2030 final, saying the host city for the 2026 World Cup final was revealed only two years before the tournament. World soccer’s ruling body has the final say on where the match will be played.
