Barça crowned Lamine Yamal as Lamine Yamal begins the match at Cornellà-El Prat

Cornellà de LlobregatBarça are back in La Liga, two years later, thanks to a win at Cornellà-El Prat. The effectiveness of the match was impressive. There was no sardana, but there was a timid Barça celebration on the pitch, which was cut short by the sprinklers and the Espanyol players, who, along with Hansi Flick, urged the Blaugranas to go to the locker room to celebrate La Liga with the RCDE Copa del Rey and Spanish Super Cup.

Hansi Flick's first La Liga title will be remembered for a handful of collective techniques, but also for a series of individual performances capable of tipping the balance with brilliance only within the reach of geniuses. In fact, it was quite discreet thanks to the accurate marking of Romero, who had constant help from Puado.

After the shipwreck at Butarque, Espanyol needed to regain their most solid and serious form, the one they had shown for much of 2025. Defending in a low block, they conceded little space between the lines. The help was constant, and they looked like an impregnable wall. Flick, on the wing, grew impatient watching how the most horizontal Barça of the season had to chew hard on each play to try to tickle the home side's orderly defensive structure. Lamine Yamal, without imbalance, seemed to be taking it easy. Neither Raphinha nor the returned Lewandowski caused major problems in a first half in which all the visitors' attacks originated from the boots of Pedri and De Jong. Their entire play began in the engine room, but always with pause and few movements forward. There were no spaces to filter the ball through.

For the blue and white team, the game plan was the opposite. Few touches and plenty of speed, vertigo, and verticality. The mission was clear: attack behind the two central defenders, Araujo and Christensen, who were slow on pace and not particularly quick. Thus came the clearest chances of the first half, two one-on-ones from Urko and Puado that miraculously failed to result in a goal. The Basque midfielder, unused to entering the opposition's penalty area, couldn't find the net, while the Barcelona striker came up against an inspired Szczesny. Espanyol's biggest sin was precisely that they failed to find the effectiveness in the face of the ball that had accompanied them until now. However, the team wasn't discouraged by the errors. The Cornellà-El Prat crowd didn't allow it, as they registered a record attendance on the day their team could mathematically secure their survival.

Lamine Yamal deactivates Espanyol

Barça, who hadn't been particularly sharp in attack throughout the first half, decided the derby with a moment of brilliance from Lamine Yamal. The winger from Rocafonda, who had gone largely unnoticed in a lackluster first half, curled a shot into the top corner, impossible even for the goalkeeper with the most saves in La Liga. A stratospheric goal that perfectly sums up their magnificent season, and which defused Espanyol.

The Blue and Whites, who had managed to get close to Szczesny's goal with considerable danger in the first half, lost their edge after the restart. The Blue and Whites' momentum faded as the minutes passed, especially when, with ten minutes left, Cabrera elbowed Lamine Yamal in the stomach. VAR cautioned Soto Grado, who, after reviewing the play on the screen, sent off the Uruguayan center back. With ten men, the final stretch was a formality for Barça, who managed to put the game to bed in stoppage time with a goal from Fermín. This time they did go up. Barça celebrates, but Espanyol will have to wait at least until Sunday to seal their remaining place, which they still have within reach. They'll just need to pick up two points against Osasuna and Las Palmas, or wait for an obstacle from Leganés, who play against the Canary Islands and Valladolid.