- Ansu Fati - 2'
- Frenkie de Jong - 7'
- Gerard Piqué - 51'
- Luis Suárez - 61', 82'
- Kevin Gameiro - 27'
- Maxi Gómez - 90'+2'
Teen Ansu sets La Liga mark in runaway Barca win
Luis Suarez scored twice in his return for Barcelona and Ansu Fati had another stellar showing as they made short work of Valencia in a 5-2 win at the Camp Nou with an injured Lionel Messi looking on from the sidelines.
The hosts raced out to a 2-0 lead with teenager Ansu scoring the first goal and setting up the second for new arrival Frenkie de Jong inside of 10 minutes.
The early heroics made Fati the youngest player to both score and assist in a La Liga game in the 21st century, according to Opta, as the 16-year-old phenom starred in his first start on Saturday.
Fati's goal also sees him reach the two-goal mark at Barca in just his third game, while it took Messi 13 matches to score his second for the Catalans.
Kevin Gameiro finished off a nice team move to pull one back for Valencia before half-time, with the referee consulting VAR to award the goal after the linesman's flag had initially gone up for offside.
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Gerard Pique restored Barca's two-goal lead shortly after the restart, pouncing on a rebound from a well-hit Antoine Griezmann shot and tapping it home.
Substitute Suarez, back from a spell on the sidelines with an injury, produced a moment of brilliance shortly after coming on, faking a pass to his right and then curling a shot past Jasper Cillessen at the near post to make it 4-1.
The Uruguay international then added a second at the near post, picking up a loose ball in the penalty area and once again curling it just out of the reach of Cillessen.
Valencia scored a meaningless late goal through Maxi Gomez to reach the final scoreline as Barca eased to three important points on a day that table-toppers Atletico Madrid lost.
Next up for Barcelona is their Champions League group stage opener against Borussia Dortmund on Sept. 17, a match which Messi is also expected to miss.
Game Information
Spanish LALIGA Standings
Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | P |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Atlético Madrid | 18 | 12 | 5 | 1 | +21 | 41 |
Real Madrid | 18 | 12 | 4 | 2 | +23 | 40 |
Barcelona | 19 | 12 | 2 | 5 | +29 | 38 |
Athletic Club | 19 | 10 | 6 | 3 | +12 | 36 |
Villarreal | 18 | 8 | 6 | 4 | +4 | 30 |
Mallorca | 19 | 9 | 3 | 7 | -2 | 30 |
Real Sociedad | 18 | 7 | 4 | 7 | +3 | 25 |
Girona | 18 | 7 | 4 | 7 | +1 | 25 |
Real Betis | 18 | 6 | 7 | 5 | -1 | 25 |
Osasuna | 18 | 6 | 7 | 5 | -4 | 25 |
Celta Vigo | 18 | 7 | 3 | 8 | -1 | 24 |
Rayo Vallecano | 18 | 5 | 7 | 6 | -1 | 22 |
Las Palmas | 18 | 6 | 4 | 8 | -4 | 22 |
Sevilla | 18 | 6 | 4 | 8 | -7 | 22 |
Leganés | 18 | 4 | 6 | 8 | -11 | 18 |
Alavés | 18 | 4 | 5 | 9 | -9 | 17 |
Getafe | 18 | 3 | 7 | 8 | -4 | 16 |
Espanyol | 18 | 4 | 3 | 11 | -14 | 15 |
Valencia | 17 | 2 | 6 | 9 | -10 | 12 |
Real Valladolid | 18 | 3 | 3 | 12 | -25 | 12 |