Barcelona Beats Alaves 6-1: Raphinha and Lamine Yamal Score Twice Each as Barca Go Back on Top
After losses to Real Madrid and Paris St Germain, Barcelona answered with the loudest scoreline of the LaLiga weekend: six goals, four by halftime, and first place back — 30 points, two clear of Atletico Madrid.
Barcelona enjoyed an emphatic 6-1 home win over Alaves on Saturday, with Raphinha, Fermin Lopez, Lamine Yamal and Anthony Gordon all on the scoresheet, as the hosts responded after losses to Real Madrid and Paris St Germain, Reuters reported. The win put Barcelona top of LaLiga on 30 points, two ahead of Atletico Madrid — who beat Levante 2-0 earlier on Saturday — with Real Madrid six points off the pace before visiting Racing Santander on Sunday.
The game was settled early. After Pedri's pass sliced through the Alaves midfield, Fermin crossed for Raphinha to open the scoring in the eighth minute. Fermin netted himself from a tight angle in the 23rd minute, then assisted Raphinha again in the 41st after winning possession back, and Yamal rifled a bouncing ball low into the corner in first-half stoppage time to make it 4-0 at the break, Reuters reported.
Yamal was set up by substitute Gabriel Jesus for his second goal in the 64th minute, and Rodri's pass behind the Alaves defense put Gordon in for Barcelona's sixth with nine minutes remaining. The only tarnish, Reuters noted, was Rodri's giveaway three minutes later, which allowed Mariano Diaz to add a consolation goal for Alaves. Barcelona host Aston Villa in the Champions League on Tuesday before traveling to face Atletico next Sunday in a top-of-the-table clash — a week that will test whether Saturday's rout was a reset or just a release.
