Lewandowski’s magic narrows Barcelona’s lead over Real; 4–2 win against Celta de Vigo

Staff Reporter | PNN

On Sunday night in La Liga, Robert Lewandowski’s brilliant hat-trick led Barcelona to a 4–2 victory over Celta de Vigo. With this win, Barcelona has closed the points gap with Real Madrid to three.

After two goals by the experienced Polish striker, teenage star Lamine Yamal scored and also assisted on three goals from English forward Marcus Rashford. Returning from injury, Lewandowski appeared rejuvenated. After the match, coach Hans-Dieter Flick said, “After his injury, I see a completely different Robert—focused, confident, and hungry. Today’s hat-trick will boost his confidence even further.”

Lewandowski admitted that the match was one of the toughest of the season. “Playing against Vigo is always difficult, but today’s win has brought us closer to Real,” he said.

Lewandowski opened the scoring with a penalty in the 10th minute, but Celta equalized immediately. In the 37th minute, he scored his second goal assisted by Rashford’s perfect cross. Despite this, Vigo did not give up—Borja Iglesias scored to equalize again. Just before halftime, Lamine Yamal scored from a deflected Rashford cross to put Barcelona ahead 3–2.

In the second half, Barcelona maintained attacking dominance, and in the 73rd minute, Lewandowski completed his hat-trick with a header from Rashford’s corner. This was his seventh La Liga goal of the season, achieved in just four matches at the age of 37.

Late in the match, Frenkie de Jong received a red card, but it did not affect the victory.

Earlier in the day, Real Madrid drew 0–0 at Rayo Vallecano, missing opportunities from Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Jr., and Jude Bellingham. Coach Xabi Alonso said, “We are still in the first half of the season. There is room for improvement, but self-criticism is essential. To maintain Real Madrid’s standard, we must work harder.”

With Barcelona’s win, the La Liga title race has become thrilling again. The gap between the two clubs is now only three points, reigniting one of Spain’s oldest football rivalries.