VIGO, Spain: Robert Lewandowski struck a hat trick and Lamine Yamal was also on target as Barcelona earned a 4-2 win at Celta Vigo on Sunday, closing to within three points of LaLiga leaders Real Madrid.
After Real were held to a draw by Rayo Vallecano earlier in the day, Barcelona closed the gap on their rivals, moving up to 28 points and pulling two clear of third-placed Villarreal.
Celta remain 13th on 13 points, five adrift of the European places.
“After his injury, I’ve seen a different Lewandowski, a positive one,” Barcelona coach Hansi Flick told reporters.
“He came back ahead of schedule. It’s great that he’s scored three goals to boost his confidence. Last season he was very important for us.”
Lewandowski opened the scoring from the penalty spot after 10 minutes, following a handball on the edge of the box by Marcos Alonso.
Celta responded immediately as Sergio Carreira scored in the following minute, but Barcelona regained the lead in the 37th minute when Lewandowski met a perfect cross by Marcus Rashford to guide the ball past goalkeeper Andrei Radu.
The hosts once again drew level when Borja Iglesias unleashed a stunning strike that went in off the crossbar in the 43rd minute, only for Yamal to chip in just before halftime to restore the visitors’ advantage.
Barcelona took firm control after the break and sealed the win in the 73rd minute when the Polish striker completed his hat trick by flicking home from a Rashford corner.
The result marks a timely boost for Barca ahead of the international break, although they finished the match with 10 men after Frenkie de Jong was sent off in stoppage time for a second yellow card.
“(De Jong) had a great game, he controlled the match. He’s playing at an incredible level. It’s not good that he’ll miss the next game, we’ll have to deal with it,” Flick said.
“It’s always better to go into an international break with a win. I hope everyone comes back healthy.”
