Barcelona back to winning ways in La Liga

November 03, 2025 / 12:07 PM

Sharjah24: Barcelona, the defending champions, returned to form with a 3-1 victory over visitors Elche in the 11th round of the Spanish La Liga, a week after their El Clásico defeat to arch-rivals and league leaders Real Madrid.

The Catalan giants now have 25 points, reclaiming second place from Villarreal (23 points), who had temporarily overtaken them after a 4-0 win over Rayo Vallecano. Barcelona trail Real Madrid by five points, while Elche remain ninth with 14 points.

Lamine Yamal (9’), Ferran Torres (11’) and Englishman Marcus Rashford (11’) scored for Barça, while Rafa Mir reduced the deficit for Elche shortly before half-time (42’).

Alavés halt Espanyol’s winning run

Deportivo Alavés ended Espanyol’s momentum with a 2-1 home win. Denis Suárez (5’) and Argentine Lucas Boyé (40’) scored for Alavés, with Boyé sent off in stoppage time (90+1’). Roberto Fernández netted Espanyol’s only goal (56’).

Espanyol remain sixth with 18 points, four behind fourth-placed Atlético Madrid and one behind fifth-placed Betis. Alavés move up to eighth on 15 points, entering the race for European qualification. The win also stopped Espanyol’s three-match winning streak across all competitions.