Barcelona will finish off the weekend in La Liga’s top spot thanks to a commanding 4-0 win over Real Sociedad on Sunday, fully dominating the match after an early red card for the visitors.
Aritz Elustondo’s 17th-minute dismissal made it easy for Barcelona to build a commanding lead, with Gerard Martin scoring the game’s opening goal in the 25th minute. Marc Casado added a second just four minutes later, while Barcelona bagged two more goals in the second half courtesy of Ronald Araujo and Robert Lewandowski. Dani Olmo also had a standout game, notching an assist on the first two goals.
The visitors only had a single shot and only had 25% possession when all was said and done.
Here’s a look at the major moments from the game:
Barcelona wasted little time dominating the game after the red card, with Martin’s game-opening goal coming in an impressive sequence for the entire team. Olmo’s stunning flick over the top set up Martin skillfully for a smooth finish, which was a stylish way to kick off proceedings and notch his first goal for the club.
Olmo was impactful on Sunday, notching two assists in a commanding win. He also created five chances along the way and took five shots of his own, boasting a combined expected goals and assists of 0.96 against Real Sociedad. He also had a 92% passing accuracy on Sunday, making it a very successful outing for the Spain international.
Without a doubt, the most impactful moment of the game was Elustondo’s 17th-minute red card. He took Olmo down to the ground as Barcelona were setting up an attacking play, with the dismissal laying the foundation for a very dominant game for the hosts.
Barcelona are back on top of La Liga, one point above second place Atletico Madrid. They were likely to go back to first place with a win, but received a helping hand this weekend with Real Madrid’s loss to Real Betis, which puts Los Blancos in third place and three points behind Barcelona.
Barcelona resume play in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday, traveling to Benfica in the first leg of their round of 16 tie, before returning to La Liga play on Saturday against Osasuna. You can watch all the Champions League action on Paramount+.
