Robert Lewandowski has continued his fairy tale ride to claim the Pichichi Award again with another sparkling performance for Barcelona against Sevilla.
The Polish forward scored twice and assisted another as Barcelona roared to a thumping 5-1 victory over Sevilla in La Liga.
Barcelona went into the game top of the table but on the same points as archrivals and defending champions Real Madrid, who defeated Celta Vidgo in the early fixture.
The Catalan giants needed victory to stay on top of proceedings in the title race, and they did it in style against struggling Sevilla.
Key moments in the match
Barcelona got off to a great start and were looking set to take the lead. They raced into the lead in the 24th minute via a penalty kick. Lamine Yamal had crossed the ball to Raphinha, who was brought down inside the box, and the referee blew for a penalty.
Robert Lewandowski stepped up and converted the penalty, wrong-footing Sevilla goalkeeper Nyland to give the home side the lead.
Four minutes later, the Catalan giants made it 2-0. Lamine Yamal provided the assist for the goal. He cut in from the right and laid the ball to Pedri, who finished brilliantly with a first-time effort.
Before the break, the hosts doubled down on their dominant display. Nine minutes after the half-hour, Robert Lewandowski found the back of the net again to put the game beyond the visitors. The former Bayern Munich forward just needed to stick his leg out and poke home Raphinha’s ball past Nyland.
It appeared he was offside before guiding the ball into the net with his faint touch. However, after VAR check, the goal was allowed to stand with Barcelona en route to a deserved victory.
The three goals saw Barcelona go into the break confident of all three points against the struggling Sevilla side.
After the rain of goals in the first half, both sides struggled to find the back of the net in the second half until the 82nd minute, when Pablo Torre added to the scoreline after coming off the bench.
The youngster had his effort from Kounde’s cross deflect off his opponent and loop into the back of the net.
Three minutes before regulation time, Sevilla netted a consolation goal via substitute and Belgian forward Stanis Idumbo. Idumbo latched onto a long ball and slotted it past Pena to reduce the deficit.
However, Barcelona ensured they restored the 4-goal score margin just a minute later. Pablo Torre scored again six minutes after his first strike to bag his brace and make it 5-1. He beat Nyland and curled a stunning free-kick into the back of the net.
Robert Lewandowski leads Barcelona to regain three-point gap on La Liga top
The win has seen Barcelona regain their three-point lead on top of the La Liga table after Real Madrid won at Balaidos Stadium against Celta Vigo to close the gap.
The Catalan giants will return to action on Wednesday, October 23, 2024, in a crunch Champions League clash against Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich.
It will mark the return of Hansi Flick to his former club before another tough cracker against La Liga defending Champions Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday, October 26, 2024.
Meanwhile, Robert Lewandowski has now scored 12 goals in 10 La Liga matches for Barcelona this season and is leading the top scorers’ chart.
