Barcelona Thrash Valencia to Go Top, Parrott Scores as Real Madrid Fall to Betis

The La Liga leaders have changed. Barcelona won away at Valencia with a five-goal victory, while Real Madrid dropped points against Betis and left Seville empty-handed after Troy Parrott scored from a rebound.

Barcelona fire on all cylinders, Yamal scores twice

Barcelona’s win at Mestalla was a dominant display. Pedri was applauded off by the home supporters, Lamine Yamal scored twice, and created the most chances in the match. Fermin Lopez also scored and provided two assists, with one of them coming from a pass by Anthony Gordon.

Valencia introduced Harvey Elliott for his debut in the second half but still could not find a response. Mbappe misses penalty, Real Madrid leave empty-handed.

Real Madrid’s night in Seville completely fell apart. They wasted five clear chances in the first half, and Mbappe’s poor stoppage-time penalty miss sealed the defeat. Jose Mourinho’s team returned to Madrid with no points.

Parrott scores against Mourinho. Troy Parrott scored the only goal. The Irish forward struck from a rebound in his home debut, and it was Mourinho who gave him his Premier League debut at Tottenham years earlier.

At the final whistle, Parrott’s emotional reaction as he received cheers from Betis supporters recalled the ups and downs of his journey.

When Parrott joined AZ Alkmaar, he told Sky Sports: “This is just to experience something new. Not many people would do this. Trying new things excites me. Life is short, and I’m not even just talking about football.”

Mourinho fires back after the match. Mourinho did not stay silent after the game. He accused the Betis side coached by his old rival Manuel Pellegrini of playing cynical football, while also complaining that his own team played naively.

In other La Liga matches, Villarreal’s home meeting with Deportivo La Coruna was also entertaining. Deportivo continued their positive momentum after returning to the top flight and secured a 3-2 victory.

Adama Traore even scored a bizarre own goal with a header on his debut, but it did not affect the outcome. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored the winner in the 88th minute. The 37-year-old former Arsenal and Barcelona forward has revived his career at Deportivo La Coruna and has scored in consecutive matches.