Barcelona opened their Champions League campaign with a dominant 5-1 victory over Feyenoord on Wednesday at a rain-soaked Camp Nou. Brazilian forward Raphinha led the attack with two goals and took his season tally to eight.
The match began in heavy rain. Barcelona took the lead after just three minutes. Spanish teenager Lamine Yamal played a pass into the box. Raphinha then cut inside, left two Feyenoord defenders sliding on the wet surface and finished with his left foot past goalkeeper Tjark Ernst.
Barcelona continued to control possession. In the 22nd minute German forward Karim Adeyemi doubled the lead. He received the ball on the left, drove forward and curled a precise shot into the far corner.
After the break Barcelona kept pressing. In the 57th minute midfielder Pedri delivered a defence-splitting pass. Raphinha timed his run perfectly, collected the ball and slotted it home for his second goal of the night.
Later Lamine Yamal stepped up for a free kick from 20 yards. In the 77th minute he bent the ball through a gap in the Feyenoord wall and made it 4-0.
Feyenoord finally replied in the 82nd minute. Substitute Sem Steijn finished at the far post after a cross from Goncalo Borges. Yet Barcelona responded at once. Two minutes later substitute Gabriel Jesus, who had joined from Arsenal in the summer, rose to head home a cross from Lamine Yamal for his first goal in a Barcelona shirt.
Raphinha later spoke about the result. “The truth is that a season has its ups and downs, and to start this season gives us a lot of confidence,” he told Movistar Plus.
Barcelona coach Hansi Flick watched his side score five goals for the fourth time in five matches this season. Meanwhile Feyenoord coach Giovanni van Bronckhorst returned to Camp Nou, where he once played, but left with a heavy defeat.
The final score stood at 5-1 as Barcelona collected three points from their opening Champions League fixture.
