Barcelona produced another dazzling attacking display on Wednesday, thrashing Racing Santander 7-2 in La Liga to extend their perfect start to the season under manager Hansi Flick. The result made Flick the first coach in the club's history to win his opening seven competitive matches, with Barcelona now having scored 33 goals across those fixtures in all competitions.
The victory also pushed the Catalan side three points clear of Real Madrid at the top of the table, underlining their status as early pacesetters in Spanish football this season.
Under stormy skies at Camp Nou, Barcelona wasted no time asserting their dominance. João Cancelo opened the scoring in the eighth minute with a stunning long-range strike that crashed in off the crossbar. Dani Olmo then went close on two occasions before Raphinha doubled the lead from the penalty spot after being fouled by Pedro Felipe, sending his effort into the bottom corner.
Santander briefly threatened a response when Maguette Gueye muscled his way through the Barcelona defense to beat goalkeeper Joan García, but the hosts quickly restored their two-goal cushion. Cancelo was involved again, this time seeing another fierce shot from distance deflect in off Asier Villalibre for Barcelona's third.
Raphinha, deployed as a central striker and thriving in the role, added a fourth after being played through by Olmo. Lamine Yamal had a chance to make it five before halftime when Karim Adeyemi was fouled in the box, but his penalty was saved by Julen Agirrezabala. The teenager endured a mixed night overall, also striking the post and having a goal disallowed for offside.
At the break, Barcelona made a change in goal, with reserve keeper Wojciech Szczesny coming on for García, who appeared to injure himself while slipping on the turf. The substitution briefly backfired early in the second half when Yassir Zabiri capitalized on a defensive mistake by Szczesny, who lost the ball while attempting to dribble past the Santander forward, allowing Zabiri to nab it and score.
Barcelona responded almost immediately, however, winning another penalty after Adeyemi was again fouled inside the area. Raphinha stepped up once more and converted to complete his hat-trick, taking his league tally to nine goals and further extending his lead atop the La Liga scoring charts.
The Brazilian was withdrawn shortly after, replaced by countryman Gabriel Jesus, who wasted little time making an impact. Jesus curled a sharp finish into the top corner after being set up by Lamine Yamal, making it six for the hosts. Yamal finally got his reward in the closing stages, finishing off a swift counterattack started by a driving run from Adeyemi down the left flank to complete the scoring at 7-2.
Elsewhere in La Liga, Atlético Madrid warmed up for their derby clash with Real Madrid this weekend with a comfortable 4-0 win over Osasuna at the Metropolitano. Goals from Jonathan David, Lee Kang-in, Robin Le Normand and Alex Baena secured the win for Diego Simeone's side, who moved up to third place in the standings, five points behind leaders Barcelona.
Based on reporting from The Guardian.