Barcelona thrash Feyenoord 5-1 to make Champions League statement

Barcelona began their Champions League campaign with a commanding 5-1 victory over Feyenoord at Spotify Camp Nou on Wednesday, sending an early warning to the leading clubs across Europe.

The emphatic win came in the opening round of the league phase and gave Hansi Flick’s side their first three points as they began their pursuit of a first European title since 2015.

Barcelona have now scored five goals in four of their five matches in all competitions since the start of the season. Elche, Rayo Vallecano, Valencia and Feyenoord have all been on the receiving end of their attacking display.

The match was played in heavy rain, but the conditions did little to slow the home side as they controlled proceedings from the opening whistle.

Barcelona’s victory was also their 19th in 21 home matches in their opening Champions League fixture. According to Opta statistics, they have drawn once and lost once in the other two games.

Egyptian forward Hamza Abdelkarim did not feature, remaining on the substitutes’ bench as his wait for a Champions League debut continues. The young striker has already made his first appearance in La Liga.

New signing Gabriel Jesus, however, was introduced as a second-half substitute before making his mark late in the game.

Raphinha opened the scoring after only three minutes. The Brazilian received a pass from Lamine Yamal, worked his way past the Feyenoord defenders and calmly found the net.

Barcelona continued to dominate and doubled their advantage in the 22nd minute when Karim Adeyemi struck from outside the penalty area. His sudden effort deceived the Feyenoord goalkeeper and put the hosts firmly in control.

Joao Cancelo came close to adding a third in the 37th minute, but his shot hit the right-hand post. Barcelona went into half-time with their two-goal lead intact.

The pattern remained unchanged after the interval, with the home side maintaining pressure and Feyenoord struggling to regain possession. Raphinha scored his second of the night in the 58th minute, finishing after a superb through ball from Pedri.

Feyenoord appeared to pull one back a minute later through Nacho Ferri, but the goal was ruled out for offside.

Barcelona restored their three-goal advantage in the 78th minute when Yamal produced a fine free-kick from the edge of the area. His effort travelled through the defensive wall and left the goalkeeper with no chance.

Feyenoord did eventually find a way onto the scoresheet eight minutes before full-time. Sem Steijn converted a well-delivered cross from Gonzalo Borges to give the visitors a consolation goal.

There was still time for Barcelona to complete the scoring. Jesus, determined to make an impression on his debut for the club, headed in the fifth goal after meeting another accurate cross from Yamal.

The result provides Flick’s side with an ideal start to their Champions League campaign, while Feyenoord leave Barcelona having been thoroughly outplayed for much of the match.