Let’s take a look back at the highlights after the clash between Barcelona and Athletic Club.

There is a lot of talk about Barcelona’s young players and La Masia. There is no doubt about the talent of young boys like Lamine Yamal , Cubarsi, Pau Victor, Fermin, Marc Bernal, Marc Casado,…

Their qualities are beyond question. However, while young talent is playing explosively, it is also necessary to emphasize the experience and skill of some veteran players, such as Robert Lewandowski.

The Pole scored twice against Valencia and again against Athletic, hitting the post twice. He turns 36 this week. It’s a great way to blow out the candles: Lewy has been decisive in both of Barcelona’s early 2024/25 victories.

Lewandowski’s impressive stats

The Polish striker, who scored twice against Valencia, hit the post twice against Athletic, once in each half. He also nearly scored in the 64th minute when Padilla did an excellent job.

Lewandowski is still the “locomotive” of Barcelona.

 

Lewandowski was in constant search of a goal throughout the match until he found it in the 75th minute. The former Bayern Munich star turned 36 on Wednesday but he is always ready to defy the law of age. 3 goals in 2 games, just great from Lewy.

Cubarsi is hard to replace.

The 17-year-old centre-back was handed a start against Valencia despite not having played in any of the summer’s friendlies. Hansi Flick only had to watch videos and watch training sessions to recognise his quality and ability to contribute.

Cubarsi gradually showed his influence with Barcelona.

 

Against Athletic, Cubarsi started again. Only 17 years old, but hard to replace. Against Bilbao, he continued to show his strong personality. In the third minute, referee Gil Manzano had to warn Cubarsi for a tackle on Nico Williams. The youngster wanted to establish his space early and sent a warning to the Basque striker.

Although Cubarsi fouled Berenguer leading to the penalty, it showed the strong character and fierce fighting spirit required of a central defender. Furthermore, he also demonstrated excellent ball control and progressive passes to change the direction of attack, helping his team quickly develop the ball forward.

Versatile like Raphinha

Raphinha, who started against Valencia as an attacking midfielder before switching to the left and ending up on the right, started as a right winger in the early hours of this morning.

Raphinha moves tirelessly.

 

Raphinha tried to maintain his position despite his pressing runs that had him roaming all over the Athletic half. Raphinha also tried to support Kounde in his defensive duties against the formidable Nico Williams , in addition to constantly looking to move, create space, combine with the attack, apply pressure, and take the initiative to finish.

Yamal Difference

The Catalan prodigy has always been a favourite with Barcelona fans. And that’s no coincidence. Yamal has always made a difference on the pitch. Whenever Lamine touched the ball or the ball came near him, people always sensed that an opportunity might come for Barcelona.

Yamal is too fast too dangerous.

 

In the match against Athletic, Yamal made things difficult for Yuri and Prados. The two players assigned to mark Lamine still could not stop him from scoring. Even though right-back Lekue touched him slightly, the goal was still counted for Yamal. Lamine’s speed, movement without the ball, dribbling technique, cunning and daring are the best things for Barcelona at the moment.

Nico Williams, Padilla and Laporta booed

The Athletic star has not been well received at Montjuic. He was a major target for Barcelona this summer and every time he touched the ball, the home fans booed him for not wanting to join the Catalans . But Nico Williams was not the only one. Goalkeeper Padilla was also attacked because the Barcelona crowd felt he took too long to get the ball onto the pitch.

Nico Williams was booed at Estadi Olimpic Lluis.

 

The match against Athletic was Barcelona’s first home game of the 2024/25 season. But a section of the home crowd soon turned against president Laporta. The lack of reinforcements and the fact that Dani Olmo was still not registered cost him. The 2023/24 season ended with boos and the start of this season has not been very good for Joan Laporta .