Skipper Raphinha fired Barcelona seven factors away from Actual Madrid on the high of the LaLiga desk as they left it late to see off Osasuna.
The Brazil worldwide’s seventieth and 86th-minute strikes secured a 2-0 victory on the Camp Nou on an evening when Hansi Flick’s males managed possession for a lot of the sport, however for too lengthy couldn’t discover a well past keeper Sergio Herrera and his defenders.
Herrera made two high-quality saves from Lamine Yamal both aspect of half-time, however in the end couldn’t forestall his aspect from slipping to a sixth successive league defeat in Catalonia with out scoring.
A tough-fought victory — their fifth on the trot in all competitions since final month’s 3-0 Champions League defeat at Chelsea — edged Barça additional away from Madrid, who journey to Alaves on Sunday.
Raphinha, nevertheless, stayed targeted on his workforce.
“We have to give attention to ourselves and if we do our job then we can’t have to fret about anybody else,” Raphinha mentioned. “We’re taking part in higher than earlier than and the extra factors, the higher.”
Barça began in predictably optimistic trend with Ferran Torres and Marcus Rashford each distinguished, however regardless of dominating the opening phases, they may not discover a approach via Osasuna’s massed ranks.
Ante Budimir virtually caught Joan García napping with a Twentieth-minute snapshot because the guests responded, however the keeper was equal to the duty.
Eric García despatched a viciously-dipping Twentieth-minute effort simply large as regular service was resumed, and the leaders thought they’d gone forward in spectacular fashion three minutes later.
Rashford clipped the ball over the Osasuna defence to select Torres’ run and he beat Herrera with a deft header, just for his effort to be dominated out after a prolonged assessment as a result of Raphinha was adjudged to be in an offside place in the course of the buildup.
The hosts laid siege to the guests’ aim, however they held stubbornly agency with Herrera saving fantastically from Yamal in first-half stoppage time to go away Flick and his gamers pissed off on the break.
Herrera picked up the place he had left off after the restart, turning away a Forty ninth-minute Rashford free kick, however Osasuna might need taken the lead inside seconds when Víctor Muñoz pounced on a mistake by Pedri to race clear, solely to shoot large.
Defender Iñigo Arguibide managed to dam one other Rashford try because the hosts turned the screw as soon as once more, and so they lastly made the breakthrough with 20 minutes remaining when Raphinha accepted Pedri’s move and drilled a shot into the underside nook.
Yamal couldn’t discover a well past Herrera as soon as once more with a curling 82nd-minute try, however the keeper was crushed for a second time when Raphinha tapped house on the far put up 4 minutes from time after Jules Kounde’s cross had been reduce out.
Data from PA and The Related Press was used on this report.
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