Hansi Flick has called Lamine Yamal’s astonishing goal “perfect” and said his players have “reached their peak” after a 2-0 win at Espanyol landed Barcelona the La Liga title with two matches remaining.
Spain prodigy Yamal took his tally to 41 direct goal involvements for the season by cutting inside from the right and curling a sensational finish into the far corner of the net as part of a vastly improved performance by the visitors after the restart.
“I think Lamine scored two goals like that in the warm-up,” Flick said of Yamal, who is 18 in July and has 17 goals and 24 assists in all competitions in 2024/25. “It was perfect.”
What a hit by Lamine Yamal! 🤯🤯
The 17-year-old star gives Barcelona the lead with a breathtaking strike into the top corner 🌟
𝑃𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑑 𝑏𝑦 @sbk | 18+ | 𝑃𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑠𝑒 𝐺𝑎𝑚𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑅𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑦 pic.twitter.com/PjyZcuhYHY
— Premier Sports (@PremSportsTV) May 15, 2025
Barcelona win title: Flick lands La Liga
A run of four defeats and two wins from eight games between November and January conclusively ended Flick’s honeymoon and led to questions about his adaptation to the rigours of a Spanish title challenge, including home losses to Las Palmas, Leganes and – in the 96th minute – Atletico Madrid.
After Barca drew 1-1 at Getafe on January 18 and Madrid thrashed Las Palmas a day later, Barca were level on points with fourth-placed Athletic Club, five behind second-placed Atleti and seven shy of the reigning champions, although they retained a better goal difference than the leaders.
“The second half of the season has been incredible,” said Flick, reflecting on Barca’s sequence of 18 wins and two draws domestically since then, via AS.
“We haven’t lost a single game. I congratulate the team, the club and the fans. It’s been incredible. [How] we’ve trained since the [winter] break has helped us.”
All according to the plan. https://t.co/b6uv7Luwu1
– FC Barcelona (@fcbarcelona) May 15, 2025
Barcelona vs Real Madrid
Flick has had a perfect season against Madrid, beating them twice in La Liga and in the Supercopa final on January 12 and the Copa del Rey decider – after extra time – on April 26.
“It’s always important to be mentally strong,” said Flick, adding that Barcelona “struggled” after losing to Inter in the Champions League semi-finals.
“Winning the Super Cup also gave us confidence. The players have reached their peak. [Players] Like Frenkie [de Jong] and others have improved.
“We’ve always thought positively, when you watch the training sessions. At Barca, you have to win titles – and three [trophies] is great.”
Champions! Period! 🏆 pic.twitter.com/7sfNOOdVWz
– FC Barcelona (@fcbarcelona) May 15, 2025
Espanyol vs Barcelona
Defender Leandro Cabrera was sent off for Espanyol in the 80th minute after being adjudged to have swung an arm at Yamal following a Video Assistant Referee review and pitchside monitor check by referee Cesar Soto Grado, and Fermin Lopez struck a second in the 95th minute as Barcelona’s celebrations began.
Barcelona were uncharacteristically quiet before the break, surviving two major scares on a night when only victory would have sealed the La Liga title at the RCDE Stadium.
Espanyol showed their swift counter-attacking abilities four minutes in when Roberto Fernandez threaded Urko Gonzalez through on goal for the recipient to roll a finish narrowly wide.
Visiting goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny then made an excellent save at full stretch to turn Javi Puado’s strike behind after the forward broke clear through the middle.
Barcelona fixtures 2024/25
There were spiky scenes between the teams after full-time, but Barca can celebrate at home when they face fifth-placed Villarreal on Sunday (18:00 BST).
Madrid had kept the title race faintly alive by coming from behind to beat Mallorca 2-1 at home on Wednesday through Kylian Mbappe’s equaliser and Jacobo Ramon’s 95th-minute winner.
