It’s the best. It was a feeling shared by a good part of football fans. But the 18-year-old who came second in the fight for the Ballon d’Or last season does not want to depend on subjective evaluations. Sensations are now accompanied by data. Numbers, cold perhaps, but at the end of the day they tell us that a hat-trick of Lamine Yamal along with a goal Lewandowski they served the FC Barcelona to bring down the Villarreal 4-1 and put pressure on Real Madrid.
Marcelino surprised the Catalans with a daring Villarreal. Insolent enough to go out and play Barça at home face to face. pity of a Ayoze at its lowest point in recent years. Because to the attacks launched by Nicolas Pepe They lacked the bite necessary to put Joan Garcia in trouble.
Barcelona was out of position. Without Pedri and without Frenkie de Jong in its engine room, Flick had surrounded Marc Bernal of Dani Olmo y Ferminsharp players with arrival but not used to setting the pace of the game.
Such was the confusion that Hansi Flick’s men at times became Real Madrid. In the absence of football, goals are good. This is what the greats of the competition have: mistakes are paid for and Villarreal made an avoidable one. Pope Gueye he lost a ball in the center of the field under pressure from Fermín López, who assisted the space for the impeccable definition of Lamine Yamal.
Top culé scorer
Hansi Flick’s men opened the scoring in the 28th minute of the first half without the need to make the most of themselves thanks to the lethal connection between the Huelva footballer and the Barça star, who scored his eleventh goal of the season, surpassing Robert Lewandowski in the team’s scoring table.
Scoring explosion this year of rock bottomwhich would not take 10 minutes to pierce the networks again. On this occasion he did not have to thank any teammate for assistance, as he alone scored one goal. He received a ball on the sideline, in completely harmless territory. Because the danger this Saturday had the 10 on its back. He left Cardona when he wanted, he outwitted Miller inside the area and placed the ball out of reach of Luiz Junior.
2-0 for FC Barcelona against Villarreal, third in the table, without the need for Raphinha, Dani Olmo or Ferran Torres to appear, as anonymous on the field as Lewandowski on the bench. For what else? Lamin10, and ten more. His twelfth goal of the season tied him with Foios as the Blaugrana’s top scorer in the League. He even had the hat-trick in his boots before the break, but hit it too high in stoppage time.
Villarreal reacts
The second half began with what the game needed most. It was not another goal for Barça, which came from Dani Olmo, who crashed the ball into the body of the Brazilian goalkeeper. It was for Villarreal to close the gap and they achieved it in a corner with Pope Gueye taking advantage of a ground ball and a validated position thanks to Raphinha taking too long to come out.
It was the moment of the yellow submarine. That of achieving a tie or succumbing in the attempt. The second thing happened but Flick had to turn to Pedri for it, who continues his preparation for the second leg of the Cup semi-final against Atlético de Madrid. Before it was 2-2 Ayoze to an empty door in a crazy exit John Garcia. But this year the Canarian striker is not the same as last season.
To the magic of Pedri
Another canary, Pedrientered the field to do what he does best: give football to FC Barcelona. Because how things change with the Tenerife player on the pitch. He began to filter passes through the Villarreal defense until he arrived at the right moment for Lamine Yamalwho else?, will cross it with the aplomb of the best ‘9’. 13 goals in the League with his hat-trick against Villarreal to chase Mbappé and Muriqi as the killers of the season.
The 3-1 score was devastating to definitively sink the yellow submarine. Villarreal lowered their arms and Hansi Flick took Lamine Yamal off the field, who this time did not seem displeased. Pedri still had time to provide a magnificent pass to Koundé, who assisted Lewandowski so that the Pole could add his goal. With the score at 4-1, the end of the game was reached: the ball for Lamine Yamal, good feelings from Pedri and encouragement to face the second great challenge of the season for the Blaugranas after the Super Cup: Tuesday’s semi-final against Atlético de Madrid where they will have to overcome a 4-0 deficit. Mission impossible? We will see.
