Real Sociedad 2-1 Barcelona: A run of 11 straight victories comes to an end for Hansi Flick’s side
Barcelona were defeated 2-1 by Real Sociedad on Sunday to close the gap at the top of the La Liga table to just one point.
Mikel Oyarzabal put Sociedad ahead in the second half and it took less than a single minute after Marcus Rashford’s second-half equaliser before the home side led again through Goncalo Guedes’ goal. Barcelona scored three goals that were ruled out and Sociedad hung on in the final stages despite losing Carlos Soler through a red card with two minutes to go in normal time. Barcelona’s defeat ended a run of 11 victories by Hansi Flick’s side, the second best in the club’s history.
The game kicked off in lively, high-tempo fashion, Sociedad bringing the game to their opponents as they always do at Anoeta and both sides creating a flurry of chances. The home side had the ball in the back of the net in the opening seconds but it was chalked off for offside, before Pedri was then denied from close range at the other end. Barcelona Fermin Lopez’s scored with a low drive from distance but it was ruled out for a foul in the build-up. Then Frenkie de Jong ran through to slot past Alex Remiro but the flag went up immediately, going up one more time after Lamine Yamal pounced on a loose ball from an offside position to score.
Minutes later Oyarzabal volleyed Sociedad in front from Goncalo Guedes’ cross and Barcelona were flattened. There was still an additional twist in an eventful first half after Barcelona were given a penalty after Yamal was fouled in the box, but it was then removed for offside again.
Proceedings were tighter in the second period but Dani Olmo was twice denied by the brilliant Remires, who also kept out Robert Lewandowski’s header as Barcelona pushed. After Marcus Rashford came off the bench to head his side level, however, it took only a few seconds after the restart before Guedes fired Sociedad ahead once more with a half-volley through a crowded goal line.
Soler then lunged dangerously into Pedri and was initially awarded only a yellow card, but after a VAR review it was upgraded into a red to raise tensions as Barcelona streamed forward to salvage the game. Roony Bardghji’s effort from outside the box, comfortably saved by Remires, was their best chance in injury time.
