Barcelona clinched their first La Liga title since the 2018-19 season with a 4-2 victory over Espanyol in their city rivals’ stadium. Barcelona won the title with four games left to play in the season.
The first half saw Barca take a three-goal lead, with Robert Lewandowski scoring his 20th league goal of the season, followed by 19-year-old Alejandro Balde doubling their lead. The Polish superstar scored once again in the first half to take Barca’s goals tally to three.
In the second half, Jules Kounde added a fourth with a header. Espanyol managed to reduce the deficit through Javier Puado and Joselu, but it was not enough to change the outcome of the game.
This victory puts Barcelona 14 points ahead of their closest rivals Real Madrid, with only 12 points remaining to be played. It is their first La Liga title since Lionel Messi left in August 2021, and the first since Xavi became the team’s manager in November 2021.
Real Madrid was not able to put pressure on Barcelona till the end of the season as they failed to put on a solid showing in La Liga. Nevertheless, Madrid will be aiming to qualify for the final of the UEFA Champions League as they face Manchester City in the second leg of the semi-final. The first leg ended 1-1, with Vinicius Jr. scoring for Madrid while Kevin de Bruyne scored for Manchester City.
On the other hand, Espanyol is in danger of relegation from La Liga for the second time in four seasons, following their ninth league defeat in eleven games. They are currently four points from safety with only four matches remaining.
