Raphinha, Lopez strike again as Barca beat Athletic

Raphinha and Fermin Lopez goals helped Spanish champions Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao 2-0 on Thursday in La Liga to continue their perfect start to the season.

The Catalan giants eased to a solid victory over their Basque visitors in their first game of the season at the partially-rebuilt Camp Nou, with new arrival Rodri coming on for his Barca debut.

Raphinha rounded the goalkeeper and slid home in the 37th minute to give Barca the lead, and Lopez netted after 82 minutes to secure the points, with the Catalans missing several chances for more goals and twice hitting the woodwork.

“Very happy to play my first game, happy with the victory, we’ve got two from two,” Rodri told DAZN.

“It’s important to keep building up rhythm and adapting to this great team. My first minutes and (I had some) good feelings.”

Barca coach Hansi Flick made three changes to the team that thrashed Elche 5-0 last weekend, handing Anthony Gordon his first start for the club, while bringing Pedri Gonzalez into midfield and picking Pau Cubarsi in defence.

The German kept Raphinha playing up front as a makeshift number nine, after the departures of Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres.

Barca have fruitlessly tried to pry Julian Alvarez away from Atletico Madrid, who will not negotiate with the Spanish champions for the Argentina forward.

However, Raphinha netted twice from his striker’s role against Elche and was on target again for Barca at Camp Nou, giving them a deserved lead at half-time.

“It doesn’t matter which position Rapha plays, as a captain he’s shown total commitment to this team, to this club,” Flick told reporters.

“You can see the supporters are connected with him and it’s really good.”

The Brazilian nodded against the post from Xavi Espart’s cross midway through the first half and Lamine Yamal’s follow-up effort was deflected wide, with Barca controlling the game.

Eventually, they took the lead when Pedri slipped Raphinha through on goal, with the Brazilian rounding Unai Simon and rolling home.

Teenage star Yamal should have doubled Barca’s lead before the interval but Simon made a fine save to deny him, while Gordon complained that he would have had an open goal if the Spain international had knocked the ball across to him.

Gordon arrowed a shot narrowly over early in the second half as Barcelona probed for a second goal.

Yamal, still not at his best level since suffering a hamstring injury in April, hit the crossbar with an effort from the edge of the box. Simon saved twice from Lopez, who netted a brace in the opener.

Flick sent on former Manchester City midfielder Rodri for his debut in midfield, leaving 10 Spaniards and Gordon on the pitch for Barca.

– Securing the points –

The champions were in the ascendency but Athletic threatened on a rare venture forward, with Oihan Sancet drilling against the post.

Barcelona eventually found their second after a mistake from Athletic defender Aymeric Laporte, clumsily nudging Barca substitute Karim Adeyemi’s cross past Simon, for Lopez to tuck into an empty net.

Adeyemi should have netted a third late on when Yamal picked him out at the back post but Simon denied the German from point-blank range.

Yamal’s second half performance was an improvement on a disappointing opening 45 minutes and his struggles against Elche, and Rodri said that the forward is improving.

“Maybe Lamine came from a moment where he was a bit down and today we tried to help him get back up and saw his best version, even though he didn’t score,” added Rodri, Spain’s World Cup winning captain.

“The goals will come because the talent is there.”

Athletic Bilbao have started their season with two defeats under new coach Edin Terzic.

“I’m not a constant winner, I’m a constant trier,” said former Borussia Dortmund coach Terzic.

“I’m fully of belief and trust when I see how we worked in these two games and in the training ground, sooner or later we’ll get what we deserve and turn results in our favour.”

The post Raphinha, Lopez strike again as Barca beat Athletic appeared first on The Namibian.