Barcelona thrash 10-man Real Betis 5-2 to equal La Liga record

By Halis Sunnetci​​​​​​​

ISTANBUL (AA) - Barcelona maintained their perfect start to the Spanish La Liga season with a 5-2 away victory over 10-man Real Betis on Saturday, equaling Real Madrid's record of nine consecutive wins at the start of a league campaign, set in the 1968-69 season.

Lamine Yamal opened the scoring in the 10th minute, cutting inside onto his left foot before curling a stunning strike into the top-left corner.

Betis equalized in the 27th minute when Valentin Gomez headed home Pablo Fornals' cross following a corner.

Barcelona regained the lead in the 41st minute as Rodri rose highest to head home Fermin Lopez's corner for his first goal for the club.

Gabriel Jesus extended the visitors' advantage in the 51st minute, tapping home Yamal's pass from close range, but Abde Ezzalzouli pulled one back for Betis just two minutes later.

The hosts were reduced to 10 men in the 54th minute when Facundo Bernal received a straight red card for headbutting Yamal after an altercation.

Barcelona capitalized on their numerical advantage as Eric Garcia scored from close range in the 62nd minute after Pau Cubarsi headed the ball back across goal.

Substitute Dani Olmo completed the scoring in the 81st minute, driving through midfield before calmly slotting home his first goal of the league campaign.

The victory took Barcelona to 27 points from nine matches, maintaining their lead atop the La Liga standings, while Real Betis remained on 19 points.

Barcelona have scored an impressive 39 goals in their opening nine league matches, averaging more than four per game.

The Catalan giants will have the chance to break Real Madrid's record of nine consecutive victories at the start of a La Liga season when they host their archrivals in El Clasico at Camp Nou on Oct. 25.

- Saturday's results

Espanyol 0 - 1 Atletico Madrid

Villareal 0 - 0 Elche

Halis Sünnetci