Barcelona Beat Real Betis 5-2 as Yamal Leads Attack

Barcelona strengthened their position at the top of La Liga with a 5-2 victory over Real Betis in Seville, overcoming a competitive opponent through Lamine Yamal's early brilliance and contributions from four other scorers. The result extended Barcelona's winning run to 11 matches in all competitions and preserved their five-point advantage over Atletico Madrid. Yamal opened the scoring after nine minutes with a spectacular strike from outside the penalty area.

The 19-year-old used a ball roll and a heel flick to evade a defender before firing into the far corner, continuing a run of eye-catching performances ahead of the 2026 Ballon d'Or awards. Barcelona's other goals came from Rodri, Gabriel Jesus, Eric Garcia and substitute Dani Olmo. According to BBC Sport, the victory also maintained a nine-point gap over Real Madrid, who had played one fewer league match.

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick praised Yamal after substituting him before the 90th minute, an unusual early departure for the forward this season. Flick said, "I told him I was proud of him because he played a fantastic game."

The teenager had already created opportunities beyond his goal, including the close-range setup that allowed Jesus to score Barcelona's third. His performance also featured an incisive pass that presented Karim Adeyemi with a scoring opportunity, according to The Guardian's match report. Yamal's opening goal followed an unusual piece of skill against Galatasaray that he had described as an "almost rabona." Before the Betis match, former Argentina international Jorge Valdano had written, "If he keeps doing strange things, we're not going to be able to explain it."

Betis responded to Barcelona's early breakthrough through Valentin Gomez, who headed in a cross from Pablo Fornals less than 20 minutes after the opening goal. Rodri restored Barcelona's advantage before halftime by heading in a corner from Fermin Lopez, scoring his first goal for the club since joining from Manchester City during the summer. Betis thought they had equalized again when Giovanni Lo Celso scored with a long-range half-volley. However, the goal was disallowed because of a handball earlier in the attacking move, which officials considered part of the same phase of play.

Jesus subsequently made it 3-1 after a flowing passing sequence, converting Yamal's close-range pass into an empty net. Betis immediately reduced the deficit through Abde Ezzalzouli, who finished a rapid counterattack. The home side's comeback hopes suffered another setback when Facundo Bernal was sent off following an altercation with Yamal.

The incident occurred after Bernal grabbed the Barcelona forward and moved his head toward him, leaving Betis with 10 players for the final 40 minutes. Barcelona capitalized on their numerical advantage when Eric Garcia scored from close range after Pau Cubarsi recovered the ball following a blocked Yamal free kick. Olmo then completed the scoring in the final 10 minutes with a composed finish from the edge of the penalty area.

The result gave Flick's team another significant league victory against a Betis side competing in this season's Champions League. Barcelona remained top of La Liga, five points ahead of Atletico Madrid and nine ahead of Real Madrid, who still had a game in hand.