Barcelona delivered a commanding performance at the Lluís Companys Olympic Stadium, thrashing Real Sociedad 4-0 to reclaim the top position in LaLiga. The victory, fueled by a ruthless attacking display and a crucial early red card, saw Hansi Flick’s side leapfrog Atletico Madrid and extend their advantage over Real Madrid in the title race.
The game started with both teams cautiously probing for openings, though neither managed a shot on target in the opening quarter of an hour. Sociedad had the ball in the net early on, but Sergio Gomez’s deflected effort was ruled out for offside in the build-up. Barcelona, meanwhile, came close when Pedri pressured Alex Remiro into a hurried clearance, with the ball looping onto the roof of the net.
The turning point arrived in the 17th minute when Dani Olmo burst through Sociedad’s defensive line, forcing Aritz Elustondo into a desperate challenge as the last man. The referee had no hesitation in showing the Sociedad captain a straight red card, reducing the visitors to 10 men for the remainder of the match.
Barcelona wasted little time capitalizing on their numerical advantage. Just seven minutes later, 16-year-old sensation Lamine Yamal showcased his dribbling prowess, weaving past a defender before squaring the ball for Olmo, who set up Gerard Martin at the back post. The 23-year-old calmly slotted home his first professional goal, igniting celebrations among the home crowd.
By the half-hour mark, the hosts had doubled their lead. Olmo, a constant threat in midfield, took aim from the edge of the box, only for his shot to take a wicked deflection off Marc Casado and wrong-foot Remiro. Casado, like Martin, celebrated his first goal in Barcelona colors.
With a two-goal cushion, Barcelona controlled proceedings with ease. Sociedad’s resistance faded further in the second half, and Barcelona sealed the result with two quickfire goals in the space of five minutes. First, Ronald Araujo reacted fastest to nod home after Sociedad failed to clear a Raphinha corner. The Uruguayan defender was involved again moments later, launching a long-range shot that Robert Lewandowski instinctively guided past the helpless Remiro for his 34th goal of the season—more than any other player in Europe’s top five leagues.
Lewandowski had a chance to add to his tally late on but mistimed a header, though by then, the result was beyond doubt. Flick took advantage of the comfortable lead to rest key players ahead of Barcelona’s crucial Champions League last-16 first-leg clash against Benfica in three days.
The emphatic win extends Barcelona’s unbeaten streak to 15 matches across all competitions (W12, D3). They now sit one point clear of Atletico Madrid and three ahead of Real Madrid with 12 league games left. Meanwhile, Sociedad’s woes away to Barcelona continued, suffering their 26th defeat in 27 LaLiga meetings at the Catalan club’s home ground. The loss leaves them languishing in ninth place in a tightly packed midtable battle.
As the season enters its final stretch, Barcelona’s title ambitions remain firmly on track, and with momentum on their side, Flick’s men will look to maintain their dominance in both domestic and European competitions.
