Barcelona produced a ruthless offensive display to crush Alaves 6-1 at Camp Nou on Saturday with rebounding decisively from recent setbacks against Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain.
The victory keeps Hansi Flick’s side atop La Liga with 30 points, two points clear of Atletico Madrid who secured a 2-0 win over Levante earlier in the day.
Raphinha opened the scoring in the eighth minute off a cross from Fermin Lopez. Fermin doubled the lead from a tight angle in the 23rd minute before assisting Raphinha’s second goal in the 41st minute. Lamine Yamal added a fourth in first-half stoppage time following a slick passing move.
Barcelona maintained control after the break, with Yamal netting his second in the 64th minute off a setup from substitute Gabriel Jesus. Anthony Gordon scored Barca's sixth in the 81st minute before Mariano Diaz pulled back a late consolation goal for Alaves following a defensive turnover by Rodri.
Despite dealing with defensive injury shortages forced to start midfielders Brian Farinas and Frenkie de Jong in the backline Flick praised his team’s response ahead of their upcoming Champions League clash against Aston Villa.
Elsewhere in La Liga the Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone equaled Luis Aragones’ club record of 344 wins while Real Betis defeated Malaga 2-1 to continue their best season start since 1934.
