With two goals in less than 10 minutes, Lamine Yamal led Barcelona to their fifth straight victory at the start of the La Liga season.
The teenager’s double, plus second-half goals by Dani Olmo and Pedri, gave Barcelona a commanding 4-1 win at Catalan rivals Girona on Sunday, keeping their lead over Real Madrid at four points.
Madrid won at Real Sociedad on Saturday with goals from Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior. Villarreal were the other team four points back after winning 2-1 at Mallorca on Saturday.
Yamal’s goals on Sunday were his second and third of the season. The 17-year-old Spain international opened the scoring after stealing the ball from a defender and sending a close-range shot into the net in the 30th minute. He scored again in the 37th after picking up a loose ball inside the area.
Olmo’s third goal since joining Barcelona this season came from a tight angle in the 47th, and Pedri sealed the easy victory with a goal from inside the area in the 64th.
Cristhian Stuani scored Girona’s lone goal in the 80th.
The hosts were initially awarded a penalty kick for a handball inside the area just before half-time, with Barcelona leading 2-0, but the call was reversed by video review.
Barcelona played with 10 men from the 87th after Ferran Torres was sent off for a hard foul on an opponent.
Girona, a surprise third-place finisher last season, won both league games against Barcelona last season.
Earlier on Sunday, Celta Vigo beat Valladolid 3-1 at home for their first win after two consecutive losses. It was the fourth straight game without a win for Valladolid after they opened with a victory at Espanyol. They lost three of their next four games.
Ancelotti’s praise
Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti said his side were not dominant enough to deserve a 2-0 win at Real Sociedad secured with second-half penalties by Vinicius and Mbappe.
However, Ancelotti praised his players’ resilience and was proud of how they were able to endure the home side’s pressure and claim three valuable points.
“It was a complicated match. We didn’t deserve to win, because Real Sociedad pushed us really hard,” he told a news conference on Saturday.
“We held on and suffered, showed character and a lot of commitment. I value that a lot because it’s not easy to find commitment in a team with so much talent and quality and today (Saturday) we did it.”