December 22, (THEWILL) — Raphinha converted a 12th-minute penalty to set Barcelona on course for a 2-0 victory over Villarreal on Sunday evening.
The Brazilian sent goalkeeper Luiz Junior the wrong way from the spot after Santi Comesana fouled him inside the area at Estadio de la Ceramica.
The forward struck the crossbar shortly afterwards before Villarreal thought they had equalised through a Jules Kounde own goal.
Officials ruled out the effort for offside, keeping Hansi Flick’s side ahead going into the interval. The visitors were without Andreas Christensen due to an ACL injury.
Villarreal’s task became significantly harder when Renato Veiga received a straight red card six minutes before half-time.
The defender launched into a two-footed challenge on Lamine Yamal, leaving the hosts to play the majority of the match with 10 men.
Yamal doubled the advantage in the 63rd minute by sweeping home the rebound after Luiz Junior saved substitute Robert Lewandowski’s initial attempt.
The teenager’s finish put the result beyond doubt against the depleted opposition.
Sergi Cardona produced a goal-line clearance to deny Marcus Rashford during stoppage time, preventing a third Barcelona goal.
The victory extended the Blaugrana’s lead at the LaLiga summit to four points.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
