Barcelona secured their first La Liga victory in a month with an impressive 5-1 thrashing of Mallorca on Tuesday, powered by a brace from captain Raphinha.
The match marked the return of Lamine Yamal, who was back in action after a month-long absence due to an ankle injury, while star striker Robert Lewandowski was rested after playing 20 consecutive matches across all competitions.
Barcelona dominated the second half, scoring four of their five goals after the break, to bounce back from a challenging run that saw them take just one point from their previous three matches.
With this win, Barcelona remain atop the La Liga standings with 37 points, maintaining a four-point lead over second-placed Real Madrid, who have two games in hand. Atletico Madrid hold third with 32 points.
“We knew how important it was to win again,” Raphinha said after the match. “In the last three games, something has been missing. Today we were good; it wasn’t our best game, but winning was the most important thing.”
The visitors took the lead early in the 12th minute when Ferran Torres capitalized on a defensive mix-up. Johan Mojica’s clearance deflected off his own teammate, falling to Torres, who slotted the ball between the goalkeeper’s legs.
Mallorca responded with a quick counterattack just before halftime, and Vedat Muriqi leveled the score at 1-1, ensuring the teams went into the break even.
However, Barcelona came out with renewed energy in the second half, and Raphinha regained the lead with a penalty in the 56th minute, after an opponent fouled Yamal inside the box.
Yamal then provided the assist for Raphinha’s second goal in the 74th minute, with a precise cross that allowed the Brazilian to tap in. Substitute Frenkie de Jong added a fourth from inside the box, and Pau Victor completed the scoring with a late strike to seal a dominant win.
Barcelona will look to build on this strong performance as they continue their La Liga campaign.
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