Barcelona vs Espanyol, La Liga: Final Score 3-1, Dani Olmo shines ...

Barcelona will finish the weekend nine points clear at the top of the La Liga table thanks to a hard-fought 3-1 win over local rivals Espanyol at the Montjuïc Olympic Stadium on Sunday afternoon. Barça fully dominated the first half and built their victory in the opening period thanks to a brilliant performance by Dani Olmo, and managed the game in the second half to secure three more points in front of the home crowd and earn the bragging rights in the first Barcelona Derby of the season.

FIRST HALF

Barça have started slow in quite a few games this season, but that wasn’t the case in this one: the Blaugrana were in the mood from the get-go, dominating possession and creating chance after chance with beautiful passing and excellent movement in the final third.

The home team could have taken the lead three different times in the opening eight minutes, but the opener came in the 12th minute thanks to an outrageous assist by Lamine Yamal and a nice finish from Dani Olmo. Raphinha doubled the lead 10 minutes later after a gorgeous pass by Marc Casadó, and Barça were in full control.

Espanyol almost got back in the game with a Jofre strike, but the goal was ruled out for offside as Hansi Flick’s high line continued to work perfectly throughout the half. Flick’s signature high press also worked wonders, and it led to the third goal as Raphinha won the ball in the final third and Olmo doubled his tally with a great strike from outside the box.

The final 15 minutes didn’t feature a ton of action thanks to a few medical stoppages and fouls from both sides, and the halftime whistle came to end a dominant opening period for Barça. Could they add more goals in the second half to secure the win and rest a few key bodies?

SECOND HALF

Perhaps because they found it so easy in the first half, Barça lost their edge to begin the final period and weren’t as precise or intense in and out of possession, and almost paid for it early on when a goal by Álvaro Tejedo was ruled out for a very narrow offside.

But the Blaugrana’s sloppy play was finally punished shortly after the hour mark as Javi Puado found the net after a cross by Carlos Romero, and Espanyol gave themselves some hope of an unlikely comeback.

Barça woke up after Puado’s goal and did a much better job of controlling possession and managing the game, with De Jong and Pedri running the show in midfield and stopping Espanyol from building any momentum. The Blaugrana didn’t create or allow any big chances, and remained solid to let the clock run out without any issues.

The final whistle came to give Barça three more points on a night that wasn’t perfect by any means, but didn’t need to be after such a great first half. Managing the game in a week with two huge road trips ahead was the right call in the second half, and Espanyol deserve some credit for the fight they showed too.

Red Star Belgrade is up next, and Barça look ready for another big European challenge.

Barcelona: Peña; Fort (Kounde 78’), Cubarsí, Iñigo, Balde; Olmo (Fermín 56’), Casadó (De Jong 56’), Pedri (Gavi 85’); Yamal, Lewandowski, Raphinha (Fati 85’)

Goals: Olmo (12’, 31’), Raphinha (23’)

Espanyol: García; El Hilali (Ünüvar 78’), Kumbulla (Gómez 40’), Cabrera, Romero (Oliván 78’); Bauza (Justin 62’); Tejero, Král, Aguado (Cheddira 62’), Jofre; Puado

Goal: Puado (63’)