Barca’s win that comes at a high cost – Lamine Yamal injured after scoring the winner

In recent seasons, whenever Barcelona and Celta face each other, it’s been a true spectacle. It’s not just that 25 goals were scored in their last five head-to-head matches, but those games were full of intensity, comebacks, and moments of magic.

This one, which started on Wednesday and almost ended on Thursday as part of La Liga’s 32nd round (1–0 for Barcelona), somewhat broke from that recent tradition and will be remembered for other reasons.

We haven’t found official data yet, but it may have featured the longest first half in Spanish league history—it lasted 67 minutes! The match was interrupted for exactly 19 minutes after Lamine Yamal scored from the penalty spot in the 40th minute, as someone in the stands suffered a medical emergency, and it literally became a life-saving situation. According to Spanish media reports—fortunately, it ended well.

Now, that goal—the only one in the match—could prove very costly for the Catalans. Right after converting the penalty, Yamal raised his hand, turned toward the bench, signaled an injury, and collapsed to the ground.

Teammates quickly surrounded him, worried looks came from both the bench and the stands, and the 18-year-old prodigy couldn’t continue. He approached Hansi Flick, whispered something to him, and went straight to the locker room.

Barcelona are worried, and so is all of Spain with 50 days to go until the World Cup—despite their nine-point lead over Real Madrid (and it’s worth noting that Raphinha has already been out for weeks, while Joao Cancelo also left the game earlier due to injury).

And he had been eager to play. Literally from the first whistle, as he had his first chance after just 10 seconds—the ball brushed the post. About twenty seconds later, Duran came even closer to scoring on the other end, but Joan Garcia made a fantastic save.

The game opened up, with Celta dominating possession for a long stretch. In the 15th minute, they threatened through Jutgla, who missed a great chance from close range. Meanwhile, Yamal was doing what he does best—nearly surprising Radu with an outside-of-the-foot shot, setting up Ferran Torres and Dani Olmo, and then brilliantly moving the ball away from Lago to win the penalty that may end up costing him dearly.

Whether he got injured during that action or earlier remains unclear, as does the exact nature of the problem. Early reports suggest a muscle injury, but a more detailed diagnosis is still awaited.

After a marathon first half, the second brought fewer thrills. Barcelona deserved a second goal—more precisely, Ferran Torres didn’t deserve to have his goal disallowed for such a marginal offside (barely visible even on a frozen VAR image) after a brilliant team move assisted by Pedri.

LA LIGA - MATCHDAY 32

Tuesday

Athletic Bilbao - Osasuna 1-0 (1-0)

/Guruzeta 16/

Mallorca - Valencia 1-1 (0-0)

/Samu Costa 49 - Sadiq 67/

Girona - Betis 2-3 (1-1)

/Tsygankov 7, Ounahi 68(p) - Roca 23, Ezzalzouli 63, Riquelme 80/

Real Madrid - Alaves 2-1 (1-0)

/Mbappe 30, Vinicius 50 - Martinez 90+3/

Wednesday

Elche - Atletico Madrid 3-2 (2-2)

/Affengruber 18, Andre Silva 33 pen, 75 - Gonzalez 10, 34/

Real Sociedad - Getafe 0-1 (0-1)

/Gorrotxategi 29 og/

Barcelona - Celta 1-0 (1-0)

/Yamal 40 pen/

Thursday

20.00: (2.55) Levante (3.15) Sevilla (2.90)

21.00: (2.20) Rayo Vallecano (3.30) Espanyol (3.40)

22.30: (3.40) Oviedo (3.40) Villarreal (2.15)

***odds are subject to change***