Barcelona remain perfect after two games to begin the new La Liga season thanks to a 2-1 win over Athletic Bilbao at the Montjuïc Olympic Stadium on Saturday evening. Barça were the better team from start to finish and the game was not as close as the score suggests, but the Blaugrana did need a late Robert Lewandowski winner to claim all three points in their home opener and continue their strong start to life under Hansi Flick. FIRST HALF The opening period belonged almost entirely to Barça, who came out with a strong attacking gameplan and dominated most of the action with crisp, precise passing to progress the ball between the lines and good movement in the final third to find spaces and create chances.
The double pivot of Marc Bernal and Pedri constantly kept the machine running while Lamine Yamal, Raphinha and Ferran Torres all played a part in providing service to Robert Lewandowski, who also helped out the team with his hold-up and link-up play. It was a strong start, and the Catalans also remained solid at the back and didn’t allow a real chance to an Athletic side happy to absorb pressure and unable to create much on the other end. Barça’s excellent early play deserved a goal, and the reward came midway through the period thanks to Lamine Yamal, who claimed the rebound from a free-kick clearance outside the box and curled a beauty into the net with the help of a deflection by Iñigo Lekue.
The Catalans nearly doubled the lead shortly after with a beauti.