Barca is 11 points ahead of Real in La Liga

18 minutes, Frenkie De Jong, Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski and Pedri hit a good touch right in front of the penalty area. The Spanish midfielder ended the situation by entering the penalty area and then cornering the goalkeeper Pepe Reina in a face-to-face position.

Pedri has scored seventh in all competitions this season, trailing only Jude Bellingham (10), among midfielders under the age of 21 in Europe's top five leagues. The Spanish midfielder brought Barca 10 points from six goals scored in La Liga, the best achievement in the league, equal to Borja Iglesias - the player who scored nine goals and brought Real Betis 10 points.

Barca have a seventh 1-0 win over 21 matches in La Liga season 2022-2023, equaling their record in the tournament. They once achieved this record through 44 matches in the 1986-1987 season, through 42 matches in the 1995-1996 and 1996-1997 seasons.

The victory over Villarreal helped Barca get 56 points from 21 matches, 11 points more than Real but also played one more game. This is the first time Barca has created such a gap with Real in the same period in La Liga since the 2017-2018 season. At that time, Barca won the championship with 93 points, 17 points more than Real.

The match at El Madrigal yesterday was even, when Villarreal controlled the ball 54%, finished 11 times with two shots on target - compared to 6 and 4 of the visitors.

Barca held the ball less but created many dangerous opportunities. In the 3rd minute, Pedri poked a slot for Lewandowski to penetrate the penalty area, but his kick failed to beat Reina in the face-to-face position. In the 26th minute, the Polish striker continued to miss the opportunity. From De Jong's plucking phase, Lewandowski handled a beat and then finished his left foot in the right position of the home keeper.

In the 63rd minute, Lewandowski dropped the ball to let Raphinha down to finish the goal and deviate from the post. A few minutes later, the Brazilian striker shot with his left foot, forcing Reina to push the crossbar.

Villarreal pressed Barca in the last minutes of the match with the most dangerous situation in the last official game. Chukwueze set his sights on Marc-Andre ter Stegen, but the goal was disallowed because Pino had been offside earlier.

The victory over Villarreal helped Xavi teachers and students have a perfect momentum for the match against Man Utd in the first leg of the Europa League play-off round on February 16.