Unquestionably, FC Barcelona had a good night with lots of options to consider. There is much to be happy about for the Catalan giants, including the performances of both new Portuguese signings, Felix and Cancelo, as well as Robert Lewandowski’s comeback.

However, in addition to the goals’ superior numerical quality and the regularity with which they started raining down on Betis in favor of Barcelona, there is also a historical significance and a sizeable symbolic significance to one in particular.

The Real Betis goalkeeper had no chance to stop Barcelona forward Ferran Torres’s well-executed and perfectly placed free kick in the 62nd minute, which nestled itself in the bottom corner of the net. With the way the ball was traveling, it appeared as though the goal would otherwise be inevitable.

The initial since Messi himself

This was the first recognized FC Barcelona free-kick goal since the one that Argentine great and Barcelona legend Lionel Messi scored in 2021, as noted by Spanish publication SPORT. Many have attempted to increase La Pulga’s unbelievable total of free-kick goals for Barcelona after his most recent addition, but they have all fallen short. But at least, a rejuvenated Ferran Torres breaks that set-piece curse and adds even more symbolic weight to an already outstanding season at FC Barcelona.

It seems this season that the Spaniard has managed to turn things around to such an extent that the same fans are now unable to get enough of their in-form attacker. Despite a difficult start to life in Barcelona last season, where many clamored for him to be given fewer opportunities to feature and prioritized other forwards over him, it seems this season.

With the preseason included, Torres has now netted 8 goals in 9 games for Barcelona, a remarkable average of one every 38 minutes. Beyond wild, and his Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez has admitted this going forward:

“Ferran is an illustration. He always gives it his all, whether he joins in for 10 minutes, 30 minutes, or from the beginning.