Lewandowski and Raphinha score twice each as Barca move second in La Liga standings
BARCELONA, Spain – Barcelona absolutely demolished Valencia 6-0 on Sunday at their tiny Johan Cruyff Stadium training ground. The Barcelona Valencia 6-0 result pushed the Catalans up to second in La Liga, though they’re still two points behind Real Madrid.
Playing at Home (Sort Of)
The Barcelona Valencia match had to happen at the 6,000-capacity Johan Cruyff Stadium right next to Barcelona’s training facilities. It’s a far cry from the Camp Nou experience – more like watching a really good training session than a proper La Liga game.
Those Camp Nou renovation delays are starting to feel embarrassing for a club of Barcelona’s stature. Still, Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, and Fermin Lopez each bagged two goals in what might have been the most one-sided performance you’ll see all season.
Missing Lamine Yamal with a groin injury probably worried some fans beforehand. Hansi Flick certainly wasn’t happy about how Spain’s national team handled the teenager during World Cup qualifiers.
“I appreciate what I saw today a lot, and this is a start after the break,” Flick told reporters afterward. He’d been pretty critical of his team’s lackluster draw against Rayo Vallecano a couple weeks back.
Slow Start, Then Chaos
The first half was actually quite boring if we’re being honest. Barcelona had 11 shots to Valencia’s grand total of zero, but most were half-chances or wayward efforts from Marcus Rashford and Ferran Torres.
Fermin Lopez finally broke through after 29 minutes when Torres managed to flick a pass into his path. Lopez sprinted into the box and whipped it across Valencia keeper Julen Agirrezabala. Nice finish, though you have to wonder if a better goalkeeper might have made it harder for him.
Valencia came into this sitting 15th in the table and playing like they remembered that brutal 7-1 loss to Barcelona back in January. Carlos Corberan’s ultra-defensive setup might have made sense on paper, but it left them with absolutely nothing going forward.
The Floodgates Open
Flick’s decision to bring on Raphinha for debutant Roony Bardghji at halftime changed everything. The Brazilian immediately clicked with Rashford, who appears to be finding his feet after that loan move from Manchester United.
Rashford whipped in a cross that Raphinha gobbled up at the far post just three minutes after the restart. First real contribution from Rashford since joining, which probably came as a relief to everyone involved.
Lopez smashed in a third three minutes later from way out. Agirrezabala really should have done better with that one, it wasn’t exactly unstoppable.
“Today is a great step for (Lopez) and this is what I want to see every match,” Flick said. “He has amazing quality… and when he has this confidence, he’s really great, (but) I think he can still improve.”
Fair enough, though you wonder if turning down Chelsea this summer was the right call for the midfielder.
When Veterans Show Up
Raphinha grabbed his second by hammering home number four at the near post. By this point Valencia looked completely lost, like they’d rather be anywhere else.
Flick started thinking about Thursday’s Champions League opener and brought on Robert Lewandowski and Dani Olmo. Smart rotation, really, no point running everyone into the ground against a team that had basically given up.
The 37-year-old Lewandowski still knows where the goal is, that’s for sure. Clinical finish after Olmo slipped him through – Lewandowski’s predatory instincts haven’t dulled with age.
Marc Bernal came on too, which was nice to see after his nasty knee injury. Kid immediately set up Lewandowski for the sixth with a clever pass. Some things never change.
Valencia’s Painful Reality
Jose Gaya didn’t mince words about his team’s performance, and honestly, what could he say?
“It seems like they’ve got the measure of us,” the Valencia defender admitted. “We weren’t capable of diminishing their strengths once again, it was a big scoreline again.”
That’s putting it mildly. Valencia’s conservative game plan backfired spectacularly, though you have to question whether they had many alternatives given their current squad quality.
“We tried to stop them with our game plan but the second goal did us a lot of damage,” Gaya continued. “We couldn’t stop it and then came the third.”
Classic case of a team that came not to lose and ended up getting embarrassed instead.
What This Actually Means
Barcelona’s thumping win will get people talking about the title race again, though beating a struggling Valencia side at your training ground doesn’t exactly prove you’re ready to challenge Real Madrid.
Flick’s substitutions worked perfectly, which suggests he’s getting a handle on this squad. Whether that tactical flexibility translates against better opposition remains to be seen.
The performance without Yamal was encouraging, I suppose. Lopez stepping up and Raphinha’s versatility give Barcelona options they’ve lacked in recent years. Still, you can’t help wondering how much of this was about Barcelona’s quality versus Valencia’s complete capitulation.
Real Madrid are still unbeaten and two points clear. This was a good day’s work, but Barcelona will need to prove themselves against teams that actually show up to compete.
AFP
