Barcelona's Lamine Yamal celebrates scoring their third goal with GaviDefending champions take advantage of Mallorca’s two red cards as Ferran Torres also gets on the scoresheet
Barcelona kicked off the defence of their La Liga crown in emphatic fashion, cruising to a 3-0 win over Mallorca on Saturday night in a match that turned heavily in their favour after two first-half red cards for the hosts.
The defending champions wasted no time stamping their authority on the game, with Brazilian forward Raphinha opening the scoring inside seven minutes. Rising teenage star Lamine Yamal curled in a teasing cross that found Raphinha at the far post, and he powered home a close-range header to silence the home crowd.
Barcelona doubled their advantage midway through the first half when Ferran Torres fired in from outside the box. Mallorca players protested furiously, claiming play should have been stopped after one of their teammates went down injured in the buildup. The referee, however, allowed play to continue, and Torres took full advantage, sparking heated arguments on the pitch.
Matters worsened for the hosts just minutes later when Manu Morlanes picked up his second yellow card for bringing down Yamal on a blistering run. His first caution had come in the immediate aftermath of Torres’s controversial strike. The frustration deepened for Mallorca before halftime, as striker Vedat Muriqi was initially shown a yellow card for a high challenge that struck Barça goalkeeper Joan García in the head, but VAR intervention upgraded the punishment to a straight red. Reduced to nine men before the break, Mallorca’s hopes of a comeback were effectively extinguished.
Barcelona dominated possession from then on and comfortably controlled the tempo, though they had to wait until stoppage time to add further gloss to the scoreline. Yamal, who had been a constant menace throughout, capped his performance with a stunning strike into the top corner, sealing a dream opening night for the Catalan giants.
The victory was even more impressive given that Barcelona were without injured veteran striker Robert Lewandowski. New signing Marcus Rashford, brought in during the summer transfer window, made his debut as a second-half substitute in the 69th minute but had little to do in a game already settled.
In goal, debutant Joan García enjoyed a quiet evening, making a seamless introduction after joining from city rivals Espanyol. He started in place of the sidelined Marc-André ter Stegen, who is recovering from back surgery, while Wojciech Szczesny and Iñaki Peña remained unused options.
Elsewhere in La Liga’s opening weekend, Rayo Vallecano defeated Girona 3-1 and Villarreal eased past newly promoted Oviedo 2-0 on Friday. Later on Saturday, Valencia faced Real Sociedad and Levante travelled to Alaves. Atletico Madrid visit Espanyol on Sunday, while Real Madrid will open their campaign at home to Osasuna on Tuesday.
Barcelona, who netted 102 goals en route to last season’s title, have signaled their attacking firepower remains firmly intact despite personnel changes, with Yamal and Raphinha once again leading the charge.
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