Barcelona capitalized on their rivals’ slip-ups with a commanding 4-1 victory over Sevilla, despite substitute Lopez’s dramatic cameo.
Robert Lewandowski opened the scoring in the seventh minute, netting his 19th goal of the season. However, Sevilla responded immediately as Ruben Vargas latched onto Saul Niguez’s pass to equalize.
At half-time, Lopez was introduced and made an instant impact, heading Barcelona into the lead with his first touch. Moments later, his night took a turn when a VAR review upgraded his knee-high challenge on Djibril Sow to a straight red card.
Despite being reduced to ten men, Barcelona extended their lead through Raphinha’s long-range strike before Eric Garcia sealed the victory with a late header. Barcelona remain in third position, two points behind league leaders Real Madrid.
By Wletsu Ransford