Ханси Фликийн удирдлага доорх Барселона талбайдаа Фейеноорд багийг 5-1-ийн харьцаатай буулган авч Аваргуудын лигийн шинэ улирлын эхний хожлоо байгууллаа.
Ширүүн аадар бороотой үдэш болсон тус тоглолтод Рафинья дубль хийж, Ламин Ямалын хоёр оновчтой дамжуулалтаар Габриэл Жезус болон өөрөө гоолдсон нь багийн ялалтад гол нөлөө үзүүллээ. Түүнчлэн Боруссиа Дортмундаас ирсэн Карим Адейеми торгуулийн талбайн гаднаас гайхалтай цохилтоор гоол оруулж, Барселонагийн довтолгооны шугам өндөр бүтээмжтэй байгааг батлав. Фейеноордын зүгээс Сем Стейн нэр төрийн ганц гоолыг оруулсан ч Барселонагийн хамгаалалтын алдааг ашиглахаас өөр дорвитой зүйл хийж чадсангүй.
Рафиньягийн хувьд есөн дугаарын үүрэг гүйцэтгэх болсноос хойш таван тоглолтод долоон гоол оруулсан нь түүнийг яагаад Баллон д’Ор-ын нэр дэвшигчдийн жагсаалтад багтаагүй нь гайхшрал төрүүлж байна. Флик түүнийг уламжлалт төвийн довтлогчдоос өөрөөр ашиглаж байгаа нь багийн жигүүрийн хурдтай хоршин Барселонагийн довтолгооны хүчийг улам нэмэгдүүлжээ.
Тус тоглолтын үеэр Камп Ноу цэнгэлдэх хүрээлэнгийн дээвэр дутуу байгаагаас шалтгаалан үзэгчид болон тоглогчид хүндхэн нөхцөлд тоглох шаардлагатай болсон юм. Гэсэн хэдий ч Барселона улирлын эхний таван тоглолтод нийт 22 гоол оруулж, хүчирхэг бүрэлдэхүүнээ харуулсаар байна.
Дэлгэрэнгүйг эх сурвалжаас харах
↓Эх сурвалжийг нээх ↓
Not even a late summer thunderstorm got in Barcelona’s way as Hansi Flick’s side got their Champions League campaign up and running with an impressive win over Feyenoord.
In fact, the heavy rain may have even helped them, with Raphinha sending two of the Dutch side’s defenders sliding in the wet after a smart turn in the box for the opener.
It was the Brazilian’s seventh goal of the season in five games since being redeployed by Flick as a No 9 — a response to missing out on signing Julian Alvarez. Early in the second half, he struck again to set Barca cruising at 3-0 — at which point Feyenoord had a goal ruled out for the tightest of offside calls, after a VAR check.
It was Karim Adeyemi, a July arrival from Borussia Dortmund in a deal worth an initial €22million (£18.8m; $25.6m), who got Barca’s second with a sumptuous curled effort from outside the box, his second goal of this new campaign.
Lamine Yamal, in the week the Ballon d’Or nominations were released, scored a brilliant free kick for Barca’s fourth, before Feyenoord’s Sem Steijn grabbed a consolation amid slack marking from Jules Kounde. Gabriel Jesus’s flicked header — from Yamal’s second assist — rounded off the night.
But the player of the match had to be Raphinha. His performance begs the question: is he the best player not included on that Ballon d’Or shortlist?
Anantaajith Raghuraman and Laia Cervelló Herrero take us through the talking points.
Soaking up the Raphinha show
It took less than three minutes for Raphinha to score — and it was a great example of the qualities he has brought to the contested centre-forward position for Barcelona.
The 29-year-old started the move after dropping into his own half to pass to Pau Cubarsi. As play then moved to the left, he continued to wander around the right half space.
Once Pedri switched the ball to Yamal on the right, Raphinha, now on the blindside of the defence, made his move. He nipped ahead of a defender to collect Yamal’s pass to go through on goal but the best part came next.
Raphinha shaped to shoot but took a touch, sending two Feyenoord defenders sliding out of the frame…
…before lashing the ball home for 1-0.
His second goal was different. He latched on to a Pedri through ball with a perfectly timed run in behind, finishing with that signature whipped strike across goal.
The intelligence, poise and composure Raphinha brings to this role is different to what Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres previously offered and what Alvarez may have brought. But with the club boasting pace and dribbling on the wings, perhaps that is exactly what Barcelona need.
It could be what Raphinha needs, too. After finishing fifth in the 2025 Ballon d’Or race, time missed due to injuries and a disappointing World Cup with Brazil meant he was not on the 30-man shortlist for this year’s award. The hope this time around will be for a season similar to his 2024-25 campaign, where he racked up 34 goals and 22 assists across all competitions as Barcelona won a domestic treble and made the Champions League semi-finals.
The two assists and fantastic strike from Yamal, one of the main contenders for this year’s Ballon d’Or, are of importance too. Two of his rivals for the award, Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland, scored last night, while Harry Kane will be backed to do so at home to Bodo/Glimt tomorrow.
The award, to be announced on October 26, is in theory for the 2025-26 season. But a strong September and October certainly will linger in voters’ minds.
Anantaajith Raghuraman
Why doesn’t the Camp Nou have a roof?
How bad was the rain? It was bad. The first quarter of an hour was absolute chaos in the Camp Nou stands. Heavy rain had been forecast — residents to the west of the city even received a government alert to their phones — but just before the match everything seemed calm. The calm before the storm.
Whilst the Champions League anthem was playing – booed, as always, by the Barcelona fans – a sudden downpour came out of the blue. Many empty seats were left as fans took cover. On the pitch, Yamal was wiping water from his face so he could actually see.
Raphinha’s quick turn in the box sent two Feyenoord players slipping towards oblivion in the wet (Lluis Gene/AFP via Getty Images)
It was one of those days when you curse the fact that the Camp Nou doesn’t have a roof. The stadium is still under re-construction and work on the third tier is not complete. When it is, a retractable roof will be installed as the final phase. This phase is set to start after this season and will likely not be done until 2028 — and Barca are already planning on having to play away from the ground again while it progresses.
In a city unaccustomed to such weather, and with a stadium not yet adapted to cope with it, low attendance figures are common in conditions like we saw this evening.
In the last match when there was a storm like this at the Camp Nou (vs Real Oviedo on January 25), Barca president Joan Laporta stoically braved the rain, acting as if he wasn’t absolutely soaked to the bone in a display of bravado.
This time, he took an umbrella.
Laia Cervelló Herrero
Patient Adeyemi and Jesus show strength in depth
Anthony Gordon’s excellent start to life at Barcelona, assisting four times in four La Liga games, has meant Adeyemi starting and scoring on debut against Elche has gone under the radar.
Restored to the starting line-up this evening, he reminded Barcelona that they have real strength in depth on the left.
Adeyemi’s curled strike from outside the box was his second goal this season (Lluis Gene/AFP via Getty Images)
The 24-year-old, like Gordon, who replaced him in the second half, offered truly energetic pressing, even sprinting from close to the halfway line to close down the goalkeeper at one point. There were a few careless turnovers, but he combined well with Joao Cancelo, who stayed wider to allow Adeyemi to play closer to Raphinha. They switched roles at times, too, with the left winger willing to take his man on and dribble on the outside.
The standout moment, though, was his goal. Having drifted infield as Barcelona passed on the left, Adeyemi used Andreas Christensen’s decoy run to pick the ball up in space at the edge of the area. He then picked his spot and curled a shot into the far corner.
The backflip to celebrate was as well-executed as his finish. Barcelona will hope to see many more of both this season.
And if further sign of Barcelona’s healthy new attack was needed, Jesus popped up in the 85th minute for his first goal since joining from Arsenal on transfer deadline day.
Barca have scored 22 goals from their opening five matches of the season. Alvarez who?
Anantaajith Raghuraman
What did Flick say?
We will bring you this after he has spoken at the post-match press conference.
