Five-star Barcelona brush aside Villarreal to restore four-point lead over Real Madrid | OneFootball

Barcelona have continued their domestic bliss at La Ceramica, where they stopped a high-flying Villarreal side in emphatic fashion. Despite resting the likes of Pau Cubarsi and Alejandro Balde, the Catalans secured a memorable 5-1 victory.

It was the visitors that struck first in Vila-Real, with Robert Lewandowski firing home following a fine assist from Pablo Torre, who was one of the three changes made by Hansi Flick. 15 minutes later, Lewandowski would add his and Barcelona’s second following a scramble inside the Villarreal penalty area.

Two minutes after Lewandowski doubled the lead, Villarreal responded through Ayoze Perez, who netted his fourth goal after his summer move from Real Betis. It stayed that way until half time, but moments before the interval, Marc-Andre Ter Stegen suffered a serious-looking knee injury, which forced him to be substituted.

Barcelona rallied despite losing their captain, and Torre added a goal to his assist to make it 3-1 just before the hour mark. In the latter stages, Raphinha scored a quick-fire brace that would add the gloss to a fine performance from the visiting side.

The result means that Barcelona have re-established their four-point lead at the top of La Liga, with Real Madrid in second – it’s also six league wins out of six for Flick’s side.