5-2, 5-0, 2-1: Football's Joy and Sorrow as Barcelona Rout Valencia, Chelsea Lose First Match, Arsenal Fight Back

The three scorelines of 5-0, 2-1 and 5-2 came on the same matchday, mixing joy and sorrow across European football. Barcelona scored five against Valencia at Mestalla, with Yamal scoring twice and Fermin contributing one goal and two assists; Arsenal conceded early to Rogers at the Emirates but fought back to beat Chelsea 2-1 through Havertz and Odegaard; Alaves went further by defeating Osasuna 5-2 at Mendizorroza, with 30-year-old Boye scoring a hat-trick to help the team reach three wins and one draw in four La Liga matches and move to second. In one night, giants had their celebrations, challengers showed their determination, and mid-table teams produced their own madness.

On the evening of September 6 Beijing time, Valencia hosted Barcelona in the fourth round of La Liga. Flick's team showed no intention of being polite from the first minute.

In the sixth minute, Fermin sent a lofted pass from the right into the box, and Yamal fired a left-footed shot from near the edge of the six-yard box past the goalkeeper to give Barcelona a 1-0 lead.

In the eighth minute, Fermin played the ball into the box and Yamal scored again from a tight angle on the right. Just as Barcelona fans prepared to celebrate again, VAR intervened and the replay showed Yamal was offside by the tip of his boot, so the goal was ruled out. The semi-automated offside graphic shown in the broadcast indicated Yamal was narrowly offside.

In the 22nd minute, Gordon assisted and Fermin finished at the far post to make it 2-0 for Barcelona.

Barcelona went into halftime leading 2-0. Shortly after the second half began, Barcelona effectively ended the contest.

In the 50th minute, Fermin cut the ball back from the right byline and Raphinha calmly tapped it into an empty net for 3-0.

In the 79th minute, Pedri played a one-two with Olmo in the center before entering the box and scoring with a low shot to make it 4-0. It was Pedri's first league goal of the season.

In the 84th minute, Olmo played a through ball near the edge of the box and Yamal beat the offside trap to score, completing his brace and making the final score 5-0.

Barcelona won four straight matches and led La Liga with 12 points, while Valencia sat bottom with one point. Eric Garcia suffered a head injury from teammate Rodri in the 29th minute and was replaced early by Kounde. New signing Jesus came on for Pedri in the 81st minute to make his official debut for Barcelona.

At 23:30 on September 6, Arsenal hosted Chelsea at the Emirates in the third round of the Premier League. The London derby exploded after just 77 seconds.

Chelsea won an indirect free-kick opportunity on the left, Arsenal failed to clear repeatedly, Hato headed the ball back for Morgan Rogers, and he struck a volley from the edge of the box into the bottom-left corner. 1-0, Chelsea took the lead away from home, and it was Arsenal's first goal conceded this season.

In the 12th minute, Rice delivered a set piece and Calafiori bundled the ball in during a goalmouth scramble, but the goal was cancelled after VAR found teammate Konsa offside during the follow-up.

In the 25th minute, Havertz received the ball on the right, cut inside and fired a low shot. Goalkeeper Martinez could not get down in time as the ball went inside the near post. 1-1, Arsenal equalized.

The two teams went into halftime level at 1-1.

In the 50th minute of the second half, Tzolis crossed from the left toward the penalty spot, Havertz cleverly left the ball, and Odegaard arrived to score with a left-footed strike. 2-1, Arsenal turned the game around.

In first-half stoppage time, Neto cut inside from the right and shot, hitting the far post before the ball bounced away. Arsenal escaped danger. In the 69th minute, Havertz again cleverly let the ball run to deceive Chelsea's defense, Saka shot from the edge of the box, and Martinez made a brilliant one-handed save. In the 89th minute, Estevao accelerated inside from the right and curled a shot, but Raya tipped it over the bar.

After the final whistle, Arsenal won the London derby 2-1 and secured three straight Premier League victories this season. They ranked second due to having one fewer goal difference point than Manchester City. Chelsea suffered their first defeat of the season after two wins and remained fourth.

Havertz became the 'former club specialist' in this match. Since joining Arsenal, he has scored three Premier League goals against Chelsea, more than against any other Premier League opponent. The last Arsenal player to score in each of the first three league matches of a season was Lacazette in 2020/21.

At 00:30 on September 7, Alaves hosted Osasuna in the fourth round of La Liga. Without the spotlight of giants, the match delivered a pure goal festival.

In the 27th minute, Lucas Boye received an assist from Mariano and fired a long-range shot into the net to put Alaves 1-0 ahead.

In the 36th minute, Mariano Diaz struck a powerful shot into the corner as Alaves made it 2-0.

Alaves led 2-0 at halftime.

The second half started with an immediate response. In the 46th minute, Moi Gomez assisted Budimir, who scored as Osasuna pulled one back to 1-2.

In the 51st minute, Boye shot directly from a very long distance, sending the ball into the corner like a cannon blast. It was a spectacular world-class goal, making it 3-1. The goal sparked discussion after the match about the Puskas Award, with its distance, power, importance and connection to a hat-trick creating huge visual impact.

In the 64th minute, Budimir won and converted a penalty as Osasuna reduced the score to 2-3.

In the 68th minute, Boye scored with a header to complete his hat-trick, making it 4-2.

In the 90th minute, Ibanez headed home to seal the final score at 5-2.

Boye finished with three shots on target and three goals, completing his hat-trick. After four matches, Alaves had three wins and one draw with 10 points, creating the club's best-ever La Liga start, moving above Real Madrid into second place behind unbeaten four-match winners Barcelona. Their coach is Flores, who previously led Atletico Madrid to the Europa League title and managed Shanghai Shenhua.

The scores of 5-0, 2-1 and 5-2 represented three completely different stories.

Barcelona's 5-0 was a dominant celebration. Yamal scored braces in consecutive matches, Fermin led the attack with one goal and two assists, Barcelona moved top with four straight wins and 12 points, while Valencia remained bottom with one point.

Arsenal's 2-1 was a resilient victory. After being stunned by Rogers' 77-second strike, Arteta's team used Havertz's equalizer and Odegaard's winner to pull Chelsea away from the top-of-the-table race. Chelsea suffered their first defeat of the season, but their overall performance showed they remain genuine title challengers.

Alaves' 5-2 was a bold statement from a mid-table side. Boye's hat-trick included a long-range strike like an international missile, and the team scored 10 goals in four matches, setting a club record start in La Liga and moving above Real Madrid into second.

On the same night, the red sea of Camp Nou, the red-and-white waves at the Emirates, and the green-and-white celebration at Mendizorroza created the most vivid football images of the matchday. Joy and sorrow always happen together; when someone celebrates on the pitch, someone else leaves disappointed.

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