BARCELONA: Lamine Yamal set up two goals and scored another as Barcelona took a significant step towards defending their La Liga title with a 4-1 derby win over Espanyol on Saturday.&nbsp;Ferran Torres netted twice with Yamal and Marcus Rashford finding the net late on as the Catalans moved nine points clear of second-placed rivals Real Madrid.&nbsp;Los Blancos drew 1-1 against Girona on Friday and with seven games remaining, one of which is a Clasico at Camp Nou in May, Hansi Flick&#39;s side have a commanding lead.&nbsp;Barca face Atletico Madrid on Tuesday in the Champions League quarter-finals, aiming to fight back from a 2-0 first-leg defeat, but the coach still picked a strong side against Espanyol.&nbsp;Midfielder Pedri Gonzalez and 18-year-old winger Yamal played the full match as Flick tried not to let the second leg disrupt the team&#39;s league campaign.&nbsp;Torres&#39;s goals were his first since January and he was happy to help Barca move closer to the title.&nbsp;&quot;Until we win it, it&#39;s not over but it&#39;s true, it&#39;s in our hands -- we have to keep getting the three points,&quot; Torres told DAZN.&nbsp;After a strong start to the season Espanyol were beaten at home by Barca in the first game of 2026 and have failed to win a match since.&nbsp;They offered little resistance as Hansi Flick&#39;s side cruised into a two-goal lead.&nbsp;Yamal created both goals for Torres, whipping in a corner which the Spain international nodded home.&nbsp;Although some wondered if Flick would rest Yamal for Tuesday&#39;s visit to face Atletico, the teenager is always keen to play and Barca fans adore watching him.&nbsp;Yamal&#39;s assist for the second was sumptuous, playing Torres through with the outside of his boot and the striker&#39;s shot trickled past Marko Dmitrovic and into the net.&nbsp;&quot;I always believe in hard work and that you will get your reward,&quot; added Torres on ending his goal drought.&nbsp;&quot;You always hear noise around you, more for the bad things than for the good... I am always focused on myself, on improving.&quot;&nbsp;Espanyol came close when Tyrhys Dolan&#39;s chipped effort clipped the top of the crossbar but they were mainly pinned back in their own territory.&nbsp;Yamal curled a free-kick narrowly over the crossbar and Dmitrovic made a good double save to keep Fermin Lopez and Eric Garcia at bay.

Football

Lamine Yamal scored and assisted twice as FC Barcelona beat RCD Espanyol 4-1. Ferran Torres scored twice as Barca moved nine points clear with seven games left.

Yamal shines as Barca thrash Espanyol to extend Liga lead

PAMPLONA: Raul Garcia&#39;s superb 90th-minute strike consigned leaders&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/vinicius-bags-brace-as-real-madrid-take-liga-lead-end-sociedad-run" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Real Madrid</a>&nbsp;to a 2-1 defeat at Osasuna in La Liga on Saturday, in a blow to their title hopes. Champions Barcelona trail Madrid by two points but can overtake them on Sunday if they beat Levante at Camp Nou. Alvaro Arbeloa&#39;s Madrid put on a below-par performance in Pamplona and fell behind to an Ante Budimir penalty, before Vinicius Junior pulled the visitors level. The second leg of Madrid&#39;s Champions League play-off against Jose Mourinho&#39;s Benfica on Wednesday seemed to play on their minds as they failed to kick on at El Sadar. <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/uefa-opens-probe-into-discriminatory-behavior-towards-vinicius" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Vinicius</a>, who scored a sensational goal to give Madrid a slender first-leg lead but was then the victim of alleged racial abuse, thought he had earned his team a point before Garcia blasted home the winner. &quot;It was not a good game from us... we have to play a lot better,&quot; Arbeloa told reporters. &quot;Nobody likes to lose, us least of all, but we&#39;re not hurt. There&#39;s a long way to go. &quot;We had control at some points but we lacked speed in our play... on Wednesday we have another final, another game that is very important for us.&quot; Croatian target man Budimir curled narrowly wide of Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois&#39;s far post early on, the first of many problems he gave the visitors. The Belgian stopper made an excellent save a few minutes later, after Budimir tried to nod home Ruben Garcia&#39;s cross under pressure from Alvaro Carreras. Budimir also clipped the post with a header as Osasuna impressed, with their victory helping them rise to ninth. Madrid defender David Alaba came close when Alejandro Catena blocked his shot, shortly before the hosts took the lead. Budimir burst into the area and went down under a challenge from Courtois. Although he was initially booked for diving a VAR review showed the goalkeeper stood on his foot. The veteran forward took the resulting penalty himself and sent Courtois the wrong way to give Osasuna the lead. &quot;I knew it was a penalty and I wanted to stay cool (while it was being reviewed),&quot; said Budimir. Osasuna sat deep at times in the second half, looking to fend off 15-time European champions Madrid. Arda Guler came close with a vicious shot that flew just over. Chasing an equaliser, Arbeloa threw on creative duo Trent Alexander-Arnold and Brahim Diaz and his team began to take control. French superstar Kylian Mbappe put the ball in the back of Osasuna&#39;s net but had edged offside, although the equaliser was not long in coming. Fede Valverde charged into the box with the ball, unperturbed by Osasuna&#39;s defenders bouncing off him, before crossing for Vinicius to tuck home. It was the Brazilian&#39;s fifth goal in his last four games across all competitions, having found his best form since Arbeloa replaced Xabi Alonso at the helm in January. Wasted chance Mbappe, La Liga&#39;s top goalscorer, should have put Madrid ahead with 10 minutes to go but Javi Galan brilliantly blocked his shot. Alexander-Arnold curled a free-kick wide as the clock ticked down and it looked like Madrid were left ruing two points dropped, when the third was taken away from them too. Raul Garcia cut inside the sliding Raul Asencio brilliantly and fired across Courtois and in at the far post. The striker&#39;s celebrations were cut short by the offside flag but a VAR review showed he was onside and the goal was given. It was the first time Osasuna have beaten Madrid in La Liga for 15 years. &quot;It&#39;s an incredible feeling... I think (that fact) is crazy. The fans deserved a victory like this after so many years,&quot; Raul Garcia told DAZN. &quot;When I saw (Asencio) coming I knew he was going to go to ground and after that I stayed calm to swerve him and was able to score.&quot; Real Betis, fifth, were held 1-1 at home against Rayo Vallecano earlier Saturday, leaving them three points behind fourth-placed <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/olmo-and-torres-lead-barcelona-to-30-win-over-getafe-in-spanish-league" style="color:#0073e6;" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Atletico Madrid</a>. Diego Simeone&#39;s side host Espanyol later on, aiming to make amends after last weekend&#39;s 3-0 defeat by Rayo.

Raul Garcia’s 90th-minute goal handed Real Madrid a 2-1 loss to Osasuna, ending a 15-year winless streak. Madrid struggled despite Vinicius Junior’s equalizer, leaving them with title race setbacks.

Liga leaders Real Madrid stung by late Osasuna winner

MADRID: Vinicius Junior won and converted two penalties as Real Madrid thumped&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/mbappe-shines-as-10man-real-madrid-hold-on-for-21-victory-at-real-sociedad" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Real Sociedad</a>&nbsp;4-1 on Saturday to move provisionally top of La Liga. An impressive performance from Trent Alexander-Arnold on his first start in two-and-a-half months also helped Los Blancos move two points clear of champions Barcelona, who visit Girona on Monday. Madrid&#39;s convincing display inflicted a first defeat for visiting American coach Pellegrino Matarazzo, in his 10th match at the helm of Real Sociedad. Young striker Gonzalo Garcia and Fede Valverde were also on target for Alvaro Arbeloa&#39;s Madrid, who face an important Champions League play-off match against Jose Mourinho&#39;s Benfica on Tuesday in Lisbon. &quot;We did great work in attack and in defense... you could tell that we were defending as a team during the whole game,&quot; Valverde told Real Madrid TV. &quot;We&#39;ve had long weeks where we&#39;ve been preparing a lot, and now we will fight for La Liga and the Champions League.&quot; Fit to start his first game since early December after a thigh injury, it did not take Alexander-Arnold long to make an impact. The England defender&#39;s cross was met with a delicate finish by Garcia, starting in place of French superstar <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/mbappe-double-at-villarreal-takes-real-madrid-top-of-la-liga" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Kylian Mbappe</a>, who was feeling some knee discomfort. &quot;Trent is a very intelligent boy, who understands the game very well, and has quickly understood what we want from him,&quot; Arbeloa told reporters. &quot;We&#39;re lucky to have a player like this, who can play inside or outside... at set-pieces, with his kick he can set us off on the counter-attack very well, he&#39;s a great player.&quot; Real Sociedad pulled level after 21 minutes when Yangel Herrera was clumsily felled by Dean Huijsen in Madrid&#39;s box. Mikel Oyarzabal powered the spot-kick down the middle, but La Real&#39;s joy was short-lived. Vinicius won a penalty of his own at the other end when Jon Aramburu tripped him in the area and the Brazilian sent Alex Remiro the wrong way. Madrid were rampant and Valverde netted a fine third in the 31st minute, moving into space on the edge of the box and curling into the top corner. Livewire Vinicius Matarrazzo sent on Goncalo Guedes at half-time, hoping his team could mount a comeback but Aramburu conceded another penalty early in the second half. It was Vinicius running at him once more which provoked it, with the winger nutmegging Aramburu and then eagerly hitting the deck as the right-back slid in. Vinicius went for the bottom left corner this time, switching directions, and Remiro could not reach his strike. With Jude Bellingham out injured and Mbappe sitting on the bench, Vinicius seemed to have more freedom to roam and reveled in being the key attacking figure. &quot;Since I&#39;ve arrived he&#39;s had games at a really high level... he&#39;s a player who goes beyond the statistics, how he can change a game, condition opponents, the number of players he can attract&quot; said Arbeloa. &quot;(Vinicius is) one of the best in the world, I&#39;m lucky to coach him, he&#39;s a great kid with a big heart.&quot; Garcia came close to a second but Real Sociedad defender Jon Martin, who performed well individually despite his team&#39;s heavy defeat, cleared his effort off the line. Vinicius was denied a hat-trick by the linesman&#39;s flag as he used his shoulder to convert Arda Guler&#39;s crossed free-kick but had strayed just offside. &quot;The first half was tough, we weren&#39;t comfortable... and in general we did badly,&quot; Oyarzabal told Movistar after his team&#39;s unbeaten run was brought to an end. &quot;We came here in a good dynamic and doing well, a bad game doesn&#39;t have to spoil that.&quot; Earlier, Villarreal fell to a 2-1 defeat at Getafe in a blow to their hopes of a top four finish. The Yellow Submarine, currently sitting fourth, were far from their best and Mauro Arambarri sent the hosts ahead from the penalty spot shortly before the break. Martin Satriano extended Getafe&#39;s lead early in the second half, with Georges Mikautadze pulling one back for Villarreal, but Marcelino Garcia Toral&#39;s team could not find an equalizer. Real Betis, fifth, could move within four points of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/mbappe-double-at-villarreal-takes-real-madrid-top-of-la-liga" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Villarreal</a>&nbsp;if they beat Mallorca on Sunday.

Real Madrid's Brazilian forward #07 Vinicius Junior celebrates scoring his team's fourth goal during the Spanish league football match between Real Madrid CF and Real Sociedad at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid on February 14, 2026. (AFP)

Vinicius Junior scored twice from penalties as Real Madrid defeated Real Sociedad 4-1, taking provisional La Liga lead, while Trent Alexander-Arnold impressed in his first start since December.

Vinicius bags brace as Real Madrid take Liga lead, end Sociedad run

VILA-REAL: Kylian Mbappe netted twice to earn Real Madrid a 2-0 win at Villarreal on Saturday and take his side to the top of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/spains-la-liga-to-stage-its-international-match-an-annual-event" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">La Liga</a>. Alvaro Arbeloa&#39;s team moved two points clear of arch-rivals Barcelona, who host bottom-of-the-table Real Oviedo on Sunday. La Liga&#39;s top scorer Mbappe reached 21 goals for the season in the competition to help Madrid see off a spirited&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/mbapp-scores-suffers-injury-as-real-madrid-defeats-villarreal" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Villarreal</a>&nbsp;side, who are now fourth. Arbeloa&#39;s side have won three consecutive matches across all competitions and victory at Villarreal could be a vital step in the revival of their season. After the shock Copa del Rey defeat at second-tier Albacete in Arbeloa&#39;s first match at the helm just 10 days ago after replacing Xabi Alonso, his Madrid have started to take shape. The coach has made clear how important his star players are and none has been more crucial this season than French superstar&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/mbappe-matches-ronaldo-record-as-real-madrid-beat-sevilla" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Mbappe</a>, who has netted 34 times across all competitions. Mbappe and Vinicius Junior &quot;are the best players in the world, they are players who can really unbalance teams, we try to get the ball to them as much as possible,&quot; Arbeloa told Real Madrid TV. &quot;They&#39;re two players who... I&#39;m really happy to have in this state of form and above all, because of the great work they are doing. &quot;They are really committed to the team, they are the first who are pressing... they&#39;re giving this effort and solidarity that we need from them, so I&#39;m very happy that their reward comes in the form of goals.&quot; It was a lively but imprecise start at Villarreal&#39;s Estadio de la Ceramica, as the game glowed but neither side was able to seriously threaten. Georges Mikautadze lashed a volley narrowly wide after veteran forward Gerard Moreno found him with a floating cross. At the other end, Madrid midfielder Arda Guler fired straight at Villarreal stopper Luiz Junior after some tidy footwork, and then shot high over the bar at the end of a swift break. Villarreal&#39;s Juan Foyth limped off hurt in a blow for the hosts, who created a good chance for Pape Gueye just before the break. The Senegal midfielder, a champion at the Africa Cup of Nations last weekend, powered narrowly wide of the post. Vinicius, who excelled in Madrid&#39;s 6-1 Champions League rout of Monaco in midweek, also came close with a rasping effort that sailed across Luiz Junior&#39;s goal and wide. The 25-year-old Brazil forward went a 13th straight La Liga match without scoring, but was involved as Mbappe found the net two minutes into the second half. &#39;Nightmare for defences&#39; Vinicius came into the box from the left flank, and his low cross was blocked, but Mbappe was on hand to squeeze home his 20th league goal of the campaign from close range. &quot;They are a nightmare for defences,&quot; said Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. &quot;I hope they can keep bringing joy.&quot; Villarreal had the better of the second half as they worked hard to pull level, but Moreno spurned their best chance by firing inches over when well-placed. In stoppage time, Mbappe was felled clumsily by Alfonso Pedraza in the box and the French forward cheekily dinked home the resulting penalty to seal Madrid&#39;s victory. Mbappe&#39;s team-mate Brahim Diaz, who missed a similar attempted Panenka penalty for Morocco in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/salah-back-in-liverpool-squad-after-afcon" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Africa Cup of Nations</a>&nbsp;final, was on the pitch to see it&nbsp;as he returned to action for his club. &quot;For you,&quot; Mbappe appeared to say to Diaz during the celebration, indicating it was a gesture of support. &quot;For me, the most important thing is that (the players) are united, we saw it last Wednesday with Vinicius&#39;s goal (against Monaco) and we saw it again today, with Brahim,&quot; Arbeloa told reporters. The Yellow Submarine are now 10 points behind leaders Madrid, having played one fewer match than Arbeloa&#39;s side. &quot;We have to be a bit more accurate in attack against these kinds of teams,&quot; admitted Villarreal midfielder Alberto Moleiro. Elsewhere, fifth-placed Espanyol fell to a 3-2 defeat at Valencia, leaving them seven points behind Villarreal.

La Liga's top scorer Mbappe reached 21 goals for the season in the competition to help Madrid see off a spirited Villarreal side, who are now fourth.

Articles tagged with "La Liga"

Yamal shines as Barca thrash Espanyol to extend Liga lead

Liga leaders Real Madrid stung by late Osasuna winner

Vinicius bags brace as Real Madrid take Liga lead, end Sociedad run

Mbappe double at Villarreal takes Real Madrid top of La Liga

Yamal shines as Barca thrash Espanyol to extend Liga lead