Barcelona, April 30 (BNA): Andreas Christensen, Robert Lewandowski and Rafinha scored as Barcelona beat 10-man Real Betis 4-0 on Saturday to consolidate their grip on top spot and move one step closer to their 27th LaLiga title.
With only six matches remaining at the end of the season, Barcelona recovered from a disappointing midweek loss against Rayo Vallecano, increased its tally to 79 points and extended its lead to 11 points over second-placed Real Madrid, while Betis remained in sixth place with 49 points.
Christensen opened the scoring for Barcelona in the 14th minute, heading in after a cross from Rafinha, as reported by Reuters.
Barcelona’s task was facilitated by Betis defender Edgar Gonzalez, who came off the bench in the 12th minute to replace the injured Luiz Felipe, but was sent off after 21 minutes after receiving two yellow cards after two bad tackles.
The locals made the most of it before the break, scoring twice in the space of three minutes thanks to goals from Lewandowski and Rafinha.
Lewandowski, the top scorer in the Spanish League, increased his tally to 19 this season with a first shot from inside the penalty area, with the help of Jules Conde in the 36th minute.
Ravenha had to wait two minutes to celebrate Barcelona’s third goal, as the assistant referee initially ruled out his attempt on the grounds of offside before canceling the decision after returning the video assistant referee.
“It’s always nice to score and assist, but I think I can always do better,” Rafinha told Movistar Plus.
“The last game was very difficult, we needed to respond and win by a big margin which was important to get more confidence.
“(Manager) Xavi (Hernandez) warned us and we know what we can do and what we lack against Rayo. We needed more attitude, we needed to stay with the ball and if we want to win the league it has to be like this in every game.”
Barcelona took their foot off the pedal after the break, relieved to see the game, but managed to extend their lead thanks to an own goal by defender Guido Rodriguez, who scored while trying to clear Ansu Fati’s six-yard cross. -Box.
With victory assured, 15-year-old winger Lamine Yamal became Barcelona’s youngest-ever debutant when he was brought on from the bench by coach Xavi.
WWA