OVIEDO, Spain: Barcelona fought back from a goal down to beat Real Oviedo 3-1 on Thursday, with second-half goals from Eric Garcia, Robert Lewandowski and Ronald Araujo overturning Alberto Reina’s first-half opener.
The win keeps Barcelona unbeaten in the league, sitting second in the standings with 16 points from six matches, two behind leaders Real Madrid. Oviedo remain mired in the relegation zone in 18th with just three points.
A costly error from Barcelona keeper Joan Garcia gifted Oviedo the lead. In an attempt to clear the ball outside his area, he misplaced his pass, allowing Reina to easily lob him from distance in the 33rd minute.
Barcelona equalized in the 56th minute when Eric Garcia tapped in a rebound from close range and substitute Lewandowski put Barcelona ahead in the 70th minute with a towering header.
Oviedo pushed forward in search of an equalizer but were undone in the 88th minute when Araujo headed home from a corner, sealing the points for the Catalans.
“It was a tough match, Oviedo play good football and in the first half we had problems finishing, but in the second half we played faster and that led to three goals,” Lewandowski told DAZN.
“I have to do my job starting or not, the reality is that there’s a match every three days. We need to be responsible and vigilant.
“I was hurt at the end of the pre-season, so I needed a little more time to get up to speed. I’m patient. The most important thing is that when I play, I want to score goals to help the team. Physically, I feel very good.”
Hansi Flick’s side, still missing injured teenager Lamine Yamal for the fourth consecutive match and again starting Ferran Torres ahead of veteran Lewandowski, dominated early proceedings mainly through Marcus Rashford.
The English forward forced Oviedo goalkeeper Aaron Escandell into a fabulous reflex save with a bullet strike in the 10th minute before testing him again with a curling effort from the edge of the box a few minutes later, with Raphinha also hitting the post from distance.
The match took a turn in the 33rd minute when the home side capitalized on a mistake by Barcelona keeper Garcia.
However, Barca came back livelier after the break and Eric Garcia pounced on a rebound after Escandell had denied Ferran Torres with a stunning reflex save and Lewandowski’s introduction proved inspired.
The Polish striker’s brilliant towering header from a Frenkie de Jong cross into the top left corner in the 70th minute silenced a raucous Carlos Tartiere crowd, capping a remarkable turnaround for last year’s champions, before Araujo wrapped the hard-fought win.
Barcelona next host Real Sociedad on Sunday, while Oviedo travel to Valencia on Monday.
