La Liga: Raphinha and Fermin Score, Simon Makes 8 Saves as Barcelona Beat Athletic Bilbao 2-0 for Two Straight Wins

At 3:00 a.m. Beijing time on August 28, Barcelona hosted Athletic Bilbao in a postponed La Liga first-round match. In the 37th minute, Pedri provided a precise through ball to assist Raphinha in a one-on-one finish. In the 82nd minute, Laporte made a mistake at the back, allowing Fermin to score into an open net. In addition, Raphinha and Yamal each hit the frame in the 24th and 41st minutes respectively, while Athletic goalkeeper Simon made eight saves in the match. Barcelona new signing Rodri made his debut in the 61st minute. In the end, Barcelona beat Athletic Bilbao 2-0 with a dominant performance, winning both of their opening two matches of the new season and scoring seven goals in total!

In the 8th minute, Barcelona sent a lofted pass into the box, and Eric Garcia's header from the left side went wide. In the 19th minute, Yamal cut inside from the right side of the attack before having his long-range effort saved by Simon. In the 24th minute, Raphinha received Espart's cross in the middle of the box and headed against the post. In the 29th minute, Gordon entered the left side of the box and squared the ball, with Pedri following up to score with a shot, but the referee ruled that Yamal had gained an offside advantage during the move and the goal was disallowed.

In the 37th minute, Pedri's precise through ball split Athletic Bilbao's defense, and Raphinha ran into the box, rounded Simon, and finished into an empty net to make it 1-0. In the 41st minute, Bernal played a diagonal pass into the right side of the box, and Yamal followed up with a half one-on-one run before his shot was saved by Simon. In the 45th minute, Pedri sent a through ball into the open space on the left side of the box, and Yamal understood the play, making a forward run before attempting a lob that went high.

At halftime, Barcelona temporarily led 1-0!

After the restart, in the 53rd minute, Yamal won the ball on the right side of the attack and quickly shot, with his curling effort hitting the crossbar. In the 58th minute, Espart's long-range effort from the left side of the attack was saved again by Simon. In the 62nd minute, Rodri came on as a substitute and made his Barcelona debut. In the 75th minute, Athletic Bilbao won the ball in the attacking half and launched a quick attack, with Sancet firing a sudden shot from the middle that hit the post and bounced away. In the 79th minute, Cubarsi received a lofted pass in the middle of the box and attempted an overhead kick, which was denied by Simon.

In the 82nd minute, Adeyemi crossed from the left side of the attack into the box. The ball took a deflection off Laporte and unexpectedly created an open goal opportunity, which Fermin finished to make it 2-0!

In the 84th minute, Yamal made a solo run from the right side of the attack and unselfishly crossed across the goal, but Adeyemi's close-range shot was brilliantly saved by Simon. In the 88th minute, Adeyemi received a teammate's cross from the left side of the attack and attempted a sliding finish, but Simon saved it again.

The match ended with Barcelona comfortably defeating Athletic Bilbao 2-0!

Starting lineups for both teams:

Barcelona (4-3-3): 1-Joan Garcia / 12-Espart, 18-Martin, 5-Cubarsi, 24-Eric Garcia / 8-Pedri (85th minute, 2-Cancelo), 22-Bernal (63rd minute, 20-Olmo), 7-Fermin / 11-Raphinha (63rd minute, 16-Rodri), 17-Anthony Gordon (80th minute, 14-Adeyemi), 10-Yamal

Athletic Bilbao (4-2-3-1): 1-Simon / 31-Johanneko (69th minute, 19-Boiyro), 14-Laporte, 5-Yeray, 15-Rincon / 28-Peo Canales, 18-Jauregizar (69th minute, 24-Grenawarena) / 10-Nico Williams (60th minute, 23-Robert Navarro), 8-Sancet, 9-Inaki Williams (60th minute, 7-Berenguer) / 11-Guruzeta (81st minute, 25-Jalo)

(Original report by Sohu Sports: Lade)