Barcelona opened their La Liga campaign with a comfortable 2-0 victory over Athletic Club at Camp Nou on Wednesday evening. The hosts controlled proceedings from the first whistle, scoring through Raphinha in the thirty-seventh minute before Fermin added a second goal late in the game. Three wins from three games sees Barcelona sit top of the table with nine points, while Athletic drop to twelfth after their third defeat of the season.
Barcelona went ahead when Raphinha found the net just before the half-hour mark, capitalising on the pressure he had been applying. Athletic struggled to create anything meaningful in response, managing only five corners to the hosts' twelve throughout the match. The visitors did manage to get two players on simultaneously in the sixtieth minute, bringing on both Williams brothers in what turned out to be a late intervention.
The statistics tell the story of a one-sided encounter. Barcelona registered ten shots on target against Athletic's zero, while the visitors' goalkeeper made eight saves to keep the scoreline respectable. Expected goals figures of 3.91 to 0.25 underline how much Barcelona dominated possession and territory. Athletic managed just 30 per cent of the ball and failed to create a single big chance all evening.
There were disciplinary issues scattered through the match, with three yellow cards issued between the two sides. X. Espart went into the book for Barcelona in the twenty-seventh minute, while Guruzeta and Louis-Jean collected bookings for Athletic. Barcelona made seven substitutions in total, turning to their bench when the result was well in hand.
This result extends Barcelona's winning streak to five matches across all competitions, though the recent form includes a disappointing 0-1 loss to Udinese in their most recent outing. Athletic's troubles continue, with defeats to Sevilla and Zaragoza in their last two league games suggesting a difficult start to the season.
