Barcelona cruise past Girona with a 4-1 victory, Yamal scores twice
FC Barcelona's Pedri scores their fourth goal in LaLiga match between Girona vs FC Barcelona at Estadi Montilivi, Girona, Spain on September 15, 2024. Photo REUTERS
GIRONA, Spain: Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal scored twice in the first half to secure a commanding 4-1 victory over Girona on Sunday, extending their perfect start to the LaLiga season with a fifth consecutive win.
Yamal opened the scoring in the 30th minute and added a second in the 37th, giving Barcelona a comfortable lead. Dani Olmo increased the advantage right after half-time with a close-range finish, and Pedri added a fourth with a tap-in in the 64th minute. Girona’s substitute, Cristhian Stuani, netted a consolation goal in the 80th minute, but Barcelona were reduced to 10 men shortly after when Ferran Torres received a straight red card for a dangerous studs-up challenge on Yaser Asprilla.
Under coach Hansi Flick, Barcelona now sit at the top of the LaLiga standings with 15 points, four clear of Real Madrid and Villarreal. Girona are seventh with seven points.
Pedri emphasised the importance of a strong start to the season, explaining that Flick had stressed the need to push hard from the beginning to create distance from their rivals. Barcelona's dominance in the match was clear, as they outplayed Girona throughout, and could have secured a wider margin of victory.
Girona struggled against Barcelona's relentless high pressing, which forced several defensive errors. David Lopez made a crucial mistake when he lost the ball to Yamal on the edge of the box, allowing the young star to score with a powerful strike. Yamal then doubled the lead by finishing a rebound from a free kick.
Barcelona continued to control the game, preventing Girona from building any serious counter-attacks or breaking through their defensive lines. Olmo added a third goal just after the break, latching onto a long pass from Jules Kounde and firing a fierce shot past the goalkeeper.
Girona’s goalkeeper, Paulo Gazzaniga, made several saves to deny Robert Lewandowski and Yamal, but was unable to stop Pedri from scoring Barcelona’s fourth. Marc Casado, a substitute, played a perfect pass to Pedri, who bypassed the goalkeeper and tapped the ball into an empty net.
Stuani’s late goal and Torres’s red card didn’t affect the outcome, and Barcelona almost scored a fifth when Casado missed a clear chance in stoppage time.
Barcelona will now shift their focus to the Champions League as they prepare to face Monaco on Thursday.