Defeat Athletic Bilbao, Barcelona Can't Move Celta Vigo

Lamine Yamal's forward (right) brought Barcelona to beat Athletic Bilbao in the La Liga Spain match. (X/@FCBarcelona)

JAKARTA - Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao 2-1 in the Spanish La Liga match at the Olimpic Lluis Companys Stadium, Sunday, August 25, 2024 in the morning WIB. However, the victory has not been able to bring Barca to remove Celta Vigo from the top position.

Barcelona continued the winning trend in domestic competitions. Veteran striker Robert Lewandowski was the determinant of Barca's victory in a tight match.

The success of winning the second three points after winning 2-1 in the first match against Valencia made Barca again in second place in the Spanish League standings.

Now, Barca are pocketing six points as well as equaling Celta Vigo's points who won 3-1 over Valencia. Only the Blaugrana lost on goal difference so they could not win the top of the standings.

On the other hand, Bilbao were stuck at the bottom because in the first match they drew 1-1 against Getafe. Bilbao was ranked 16 after getting the first point.

"I feel satisfied with two wins from the match against a tough team," said Barca coach Hansi Flick.

Not only that, but Flick could not field the best squad. Barca has been abandoned by midfielder Ilkay Gundogan who returned to Manchester City. In addition, a number of players such as Gavi, Ronald Araujo and Frenkie De Jong have not recovered from injury.

The new midfielder Dani Olmo has not been able to appear. Barca has not been able to register Olmo with La Liga because the club has not complied with Financial Fair Play provisions.

"We lost injured players. However, we played well, especially in the defense sector," he said.

In that match, Barca showed their best performance. They took the initiative to attack and create a number of opportunities. The hosts' efforts finally paid off when Lamine Yamal broke into Bilbao's goal in the 24th minute. The Spaniard took advantage of the opportunity by grabbing a wild ball that beat goalkeeper Alex Padilla.

Barca only failed to maintain their lead. Towards the end of the first half, Bilbao managed to equalize the score from the penalty spot after Pau Cubarsi defender fouled Alex Berenguer in the box.

The referee pointed to the spot and Oihan Sancet successfully beat goalkeeper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, the score was back as strong as 1-1 which lasted until the end of the first half.

In the second half, Barca did not lower the tempo of the game. They played openly to get a second goal. On the other hand, Bilbao, who relied on the player Barca had targeted, Nico Willams, also appeared to attack. But they haven't been able to add goals yet.

Barca finally managed to take the lead after Lewandowski broke the deadlock in the 75th minute. He welcomed the rebound ball which was blocked by goalkeeper Padilla. The score changed to 2-1 for Barca. They maintained that advantage until the end of the match.