Barcelona returned to the top of La Liga with a 3-0 win over bottom-of-the-table Real Oviedo, capitalizing on two second-half errors in heavy rain at Camp Nou and capped by a spectacular acrobatic finish from Lamine Yamal.
Monday January 26, 2026
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An acrobatic Lamine Yamal strike makes it 3-0 to Barcelona against Real Oviedo. Photograph: Albert Gea/Reuters
The victory lifts Barcelona to 52 points, one ahead of Real Madrid, with Atlético Madrid third on 44. It also underscored the growing influence of 18-year-old Yamal and the value of Dani Olmo’s incisive movement against a deep, disciplined back line.
La Liga: Barcelona 3-0 Real Oviedo
Barça labored through a sodden first half, pinning Oviedo back without finding the final touch. The breakthrough arrived in the 52nd minute after hesitation in the visitors’ box handed Olmo a clean look, the midfielder guiding a low finish into the corner.
Five minutes later, Barcelona pressed the advantage when an under-hit back pass was seized upon by Raphinha, who darted clear and coolly lifted a chip over the onrushing Aarón Escandell to make it 2-0.
Yamal sealed the result and the headline moment in the 73rd minute, ghosting to the far post to meet Olmo’s measured cross with a leaping scissor-kick that flashed inside the right upright. In a night of fine margins and wet grass, Barcelona were sharper in the details and ruthless when Oviedo blinked.
Elsewhere in Spain: Atlético rise
Atlético Madrid cruised past struggling Mallorca 3-0 to consolidate third place, opening the scoring before an own goal by David López and a late strike from substitute Thiago Almada finished the job for Diego Simeone’s side.
Ligue 1: Endrick hat-trick powers Lyon
In France, on-loan Real Madrid forward Endrick delivered a hat-trick as Lyon hammered Metz 5-1 to extend their winning streak to eight across all competitions. Corentin Tolisso teed up Endrick for the 11th-minute opener, and Ruben Kluivert doubled the lead five minutes later. Former Liverpool midfielder Tyler Morton added a crisp strike from the edge of the area to make it three before bottom-side Metz briefly rallied through Koffi Kouao.
Lyon reasserted control when Endrick raced clear to restore the three-goal cushion at 4-1. Habib Diallo pulled one back for Metz in the 64th minute, but Endrick completed his treble from the spot after being tripped in the box, underscoring Lyon’s blistering winter form.
Serie A: Juventus surge; Milan held in Rome
Juventus issued a timely statement in the top-four race, beating injury-hit Napoli 3-0 in Turin. Jonathan David started the scoring before Kenan Yildiz put daylight between the sides in the 77th minute, timing his run to collect Fabio Miretti’s through ball and finishing past Alex Meret. Filip Kostic sealed it in the 86th with a long-range effort that skidded into the bottom corner, reinforcing Juventus’s momentum as the run-in approaches.
In the capital, Milan’s title push stalled in a rain-soaked 1-1 draw at Roma, a result that left Inter five points clear at the top. Goalkeeper Mike Maignan kept Milan afloat in a first half dominated by Roma, producing a reflex stop on the line to preserve parity. Koni De Winter broke through for the visitors in the 62nd minute, glancing a header from a whipped cross, but the hosts leveled 12 minutes later when Davide Bartesaghi was penalized for handball and Lorenzo Pellegrini buried the penalty. Roma climbed to third on 43 points, level with Napoli, while second-placed Milan moved to 47.
Elsewhere in Italy, Bologna squandered a 2-0 lead to lose 3-2 at Genoa, a comeback win that lifted the hosts six points clear of the drop and left Bologna further adrift of the European spots.
Bundesliga: Stuttgart steady; historic moment in Germany’s second tier
Stuttgart rebounded from their Europa League loss at Roma with a composed 3-0 victory at Borussia Mönchengladbach. The early turning point came when Alexander Nübel saved Haris Tabaković’s 11th-minute penalty after a handball call against Jamie Leweling. Leweling atoned by opening the scoring on 30 minutes, and Stuttgart earned a deserved cushion when Chris Führich’s corner deflected off Joe Scally for an own goal. In-form Deniz Undav, introduced on the hour, sealed the points in the 74th minute.
In the 2. Bundesliga, a milestone: former Manchester City striker Edin Dzeko, 39 years and 314 days old, became the oldest scorer in the division as Schalke rallied to draw 2-2 with Kaiserslautern. Signed this week from Fiorentina until season’s end, Dzeko struck in the 87th minute to spark the comeback on his debut, and Kenan Karaman equalized in the 90th to cancel out the visitors’ two-goal lead.
What it means
Barcelona’s win, grounded in control and opportunism, reasserted their title credentials and tightened the screw on Real Madrid. Yamal’s acrobatic volley and Olmo’s orchestration offered both a flourish and a blueprint for how Xavi’s side can unpick low blocks over the coming months. Across Europe, Lyon’s surge underlined their sudden cohesion with Endrick at the tip, while Juventus’s clean-sheet authority signaled a team hitting its stride. In Germany, Stuttgart’s response and Dzeko’s late-career landmark added texture to a weekend defined by resilience as much as headline brilliance.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
