Barcelona equal La Liga’s best-ever start after ninth straight win

Hansi Flick’s Barcelona have matched the best opening run in La Liga history after a 5-2 victory over Real Betis secured their ninth consecutive league win of the season.

The result at La Cartuja also saw Barcelona surpass the club record for victories at the start of a league campaign. Their previous best had been set by the side managed by Tata Martino in 2013-14, which won its opening eight matches before drawing 0-0 with Osasuna in the ninth round.

Barcelona’s perfect start has now been extended to nine wins, putting them level with Real Madrid’s league record from the 1968-69 season. Real Madrid also won their first nine matches of that campaign.

The Catalan club can claim the outright record if they defeat Real Madrid in El Clasico on Sunday. Victory would give Barcelona 10 wins from their opening 10 La Liga fixtures and establish the best start in the competition’s history.

The result was also significant for Real Betis. It was their first home defeat in La Liga since they lost 5-3 to Barcelona in December. In all competitions, it was their first loss since April, when they were beaten 4-2 by Sporting Braga.

Raphinha equalled Neymar’s appearance record for Barcelona and is now the fifth-most capped Brazilian player in the club’s history, with 186 matches.

Lamine Yamal also reached a notable milestone. He became the first player in Europe’s top five leagues to register 10 assists this season. Across all competitions, he is the leading goal contributor in those leagues, with nine goals and 10 assists.

Barcelona’s victory over Real Betis was their 11th in a row in all official matches this season. It is the first time they have opened a campaign with 11 successive competitive wins since 1923-24.