Barcelona Leave Real Madrid After Beating Rayo Vallecano

Captain Ronald Araujo celebrates his goal as Barcelona beat Albacete 1-0 in Spain's LaLiga. (X/@FCBarcelona)

Barcelona had to work hard and only won 1-0 over Rayo Vallecano in a Spanish LaLiga match at Camp Nou Stadium, Sunday, March 22, 2026 WIB. This victory makes Barca even further away from its rival, Real Madrid, when the competition enters the final part.

Barca cemented their position at the top of the table after a crucial victory over Rayo who are currently struggling in the bottom half. Even though they face an opponent who wants to stay away from the threat of the teams below them, Barca must fight to get three points.

Even the only goal that determined Barca's victory was scored by a defender. Yes, Ronald Araujo broke the deadlock when striker Robert Lewandowski, supported by Raphinha and Lamine Yanal, did not budge at all against Rayo's defense.

Likewise, the inclusion of Marcus Rashford, Ferran Torres and Dani Olmo could not add goals to consolidate the victory.

However, Araujo's goal was enough to confirm the Blaugrana's position at the top of the standings. The hope to retain the league title is also open after Barca collected 73 points. Now, they are seven points ahead of Madrid who are in second place.

Madrid hopes to cut the points gap with Barca. The question is, they face a tough opponent, Atletico Madrid, in the Madrid Derby at the Santiago Bernabeu, Monday, March 23, 2026 WIB.

Meanwhile, Rayo failed to improve their ranking. The defeat in the away game made Rayo remain in 14th place with 32 points. They are only four points ahead of Mallorca who are in the relegation zone.

In the match, Barca was able to dominate their opponents. They played offensively and created a number of opportunities. However, Hansi Flick's team had to wait until the 24th minute to break Rayo's goal.

Yes, Araujo who brought Barca ahead after his header that greeted Joao Cancelo's corner managed to defeat goalkeeper Augusto Batalla.

After taking the lead 1-0, Barca continued to play aggressively. They got the opportunity to increase the lead through Raphinha. Only his kick which went to the top corner of the goal hit the opponent's player so that it changed direction and could be stopped by Batalla.

In the second half, Barca continued to play offensively. Only, Rayo started to fight back. Even the visiting team had a chance through Unai Lopez. But his header from close range was brilliantly thwarted by goalkeeper Joan Garcia.

Rayo again created a good opportunity when Pacha Espino shot at the Barca goal in the 83rd minute. Only his kick still soared which made Barca able to maintain a 1-0 lead until the end of the match.