Barcelona captain Raphinha struck twice late on to push the Catalans seven points clear of Real Madrid at the top of La Liga with a hard-earned 2-0 win over Osasuna at the Camp Nou.
Hansi Flick’s side dominated possession for long spells but struggled to break down a disciplined Osasuna defence and an inspired Sergio Herrera in goal.
The visitors’ goalkeeper frustrated Barça throughout, producing fine saves to deny Lamine Yamal before and after the interval, as well as keeping out efforts from Marcus Rashford.
Despite the pressure, Barcelona’s patience was tested. Ferran Torres thought he had opened the scoring in the first half with a clever header after a lofted pass from Rashford, but the goal was ruled out following a VAR review for an offside call against Raphinha in the build-up.
Osasuna threatened on the counter, with Ante Budimir forcing a save from Joan García and Víctor Muñoz wasting a clear chance early in the second half after capitalising on a mistake from Pedri.
The breakthrough finally arrived in the 70th minute when Raphinha latched onto a pass from Pedri and fired a low shot into the corner to relieve the mounting frustration.
Yamal went close again soon after, only to be denied once more by Herrera.
Raphinha sealed the victory late on, tapping in at the far post in the 86th minute after Jules Kounde’s cross caused problems in the Osasuna box.
The result extended Barcelona’s winning run to five matches in all competitions and marked Osasuna’s sixth straight league defeat away to Barça without scoring.
With Real Madrid set to face Alavés on Sunday, Barcelona strengthened their grip on the title race.
Raphinha, however, insisted the focus remains internal. “We just have to concentrate on ourselves,” he said. “If we keep doing our job, the points will take care of themselves.”
