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Spanish giant FC Barcelona secured the league title last night by defeating Espanyol with a 4-2 margin. It is their first league title since their club legend Lionel Messi left in 2021 and the first for Xavi Hernandes as a manager.
However, the Catalans have secured the title with four games in hand. Barcelona are at the top of the table with 85 points, 14 more than their closest rival, Real Madrid, with 12 points left to play for.
Match Report: Espanyol 2-4 Barca
Barcelona were very desperate to secure the title and wasted no time. They were aggressive from the start of the match and took the lead very early. It was Robert Lewandowski for FC Barcelona who opened the scoresheet with a fantastic goal in just 11 minutes.
The first half saw Barcelona’s complete dominance against the home team, Espanyol, at Cornella-El Prat. FC Barcelona doubled their lead in 20 minutes as Alejandro Balbe found the net for the first time in Barca’s jersey. Moreover, Barcelona took a 3-0 lead in the first half. Robert Lewandowski completed his brace in the 40th minute as he found the net with an assist from Rafinha. It is Lewandowski’s 21 goals in La Liga for Barcelona.
However, Barcelona had a good start after coming from the break. They started the second half with a goal. This time, Jules Kounde netted the ball with the help of Frankie de Jong in the 53rd minute. Anyway, Espanyol did reduce the deficit through Javi Puado and Joselu. But it helped nothing to avoid defeat against Barcelona. Therefore, Barcelona won the game by a 4-2 margin and secured the league title.
Xavi’s Reaction
Barca boss Xavi Hernandes is very delighted to win La Liga for the first time as a manager. He said, “I have the feeling that it is a job well done. We started in July and we have put in an extraordinary league campaign. It’s really important for the stability of the project and it confirms that we are going about things the right way.”
“The moment to show that we could be brilliant. It’s not Xavi’s league, it’s Barça’s league title, a Barça that is growing and developing. I am delighted for the players, for the staff and for the board…I feel really proud to coach these players,” the manager added.
