Barca, however, took an early two-goal lead thanks to a perfectly placed cross by Yamal that allowed Gavi to open the scoring in the 12th minute with a close-range header and three minutes later, they doubled their advantage with a shot by Frenkie De Jong following a defensive mistake. But the hosts kept up their relentless pace and recovered with first-half goals by Juan Foyth and Alexander Sorloth, and from Alex Baena five minutes after the break. After a string of saves by Barca goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Foyth’s bullet header from a corner in the 26th minute fired up the home crowd. Sorloth scored the equaliser from close range 14 minutes later after a fine team move involving Gerard Moreno and Alfonso Pedraza, who delivered a cross for the Norway forward to level.
Pedraza was involved in another fine build-up to Villarreal’s third in the 50th minute, powering up the left channel in a fast counter-attack and putting it on a plate for Baena to cut inside and finish with a curling shot into the top corner. However, last year’s LaLiga champions woke up with Yamal creating all types of trouble for the hosts’ defence. He almost levelled the game in the 56th minute, but his thunderous strike from the edge of the box smashed against the crossbar.
Substitute Ferran Torres struck from close range to level the match again in the 68th minute for the visitors, with Yamal striking another bullet against the woodwork, only this time the ball bounced to Lewandowski, who tapped in the rebound off the post to score his first goal of the season and give Barca a hard-fought win in a pulsating affair. It was Barca’s second win in three games this season. They are third in the LaLiga standings on seven points, level with Girona, trailing leaders Real Madrid by two points.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday Islamic countries should form an alliance against what…
A rare snake species known as the blunt-nosed viper and other reptiles, especially the geico…
As Pakistan prepares to celebrate the birthday of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) on September…
PCB Director High-Performance, Tournament Director Champions One Day Cup Nadeem Khan has said that the…
The Health experts addressing a symposium on Saturday stressed lifestyle changes to prevent diabetes which…
Pakistan's combined contingent is all set to participate in the 5th World Nomad Games, scheduled…
Leave a Comment