Barcelona are on course to lose touch with the top of the La Liga table even further. With Real Madrid winning earlier in the day, Xavi Hernandez’s side need three points to keep pace with their bitter rivals. However, they are on course to lose, having gone 2-0 down at home to Villarreal.
Gerard Moreno opened the scoring just before half time with a fine finish, and not long after the interval, Villarreal’s lead has been doubled. A big mistake from Joao Cancelo presented a huge opportunity to Ilias Akhomach, who made no mistake against his former club.
Ilias Akhomach piles on the misery for his former club 🟡
Villarreal double their lead over Barcelona and Joao Cancelo won't want to see that one again 😬 pic.twitter.com/Xe6gorsKt2
— Viaplay Sports UK (@ViaplaySportsUK) January 27, 2024
🚨🚨| GOAL: Ilias Akhomach scores against his former club!
Barcelona 0-2 Villarreal pic.twitter.com/wbnzEdgQxG
— CentreGoals. (@centregoals) January 27, 2024
Cancelo is only just making his first appearance for Barcelona since returning from a knee injury suffered at the start of the month, but that is certainly a moment that he will not want to see again. However, it is utter delight for Villarreal, who are now in an excellent position at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys.