The game is over and the final score is Barcelona 2-3 Villarreal. Here is the match report.
Match report
In their first game, Barcelona dropped to a 3-2 home defeat against Villarreal after he was crowned Leaga-Champions.
The Hansi Flick team sealed the title with a 2-0 win over local rivals Espanyol on Thursday.
But perhaps suffering from a hangover at their parties, the Blaugrana slid out at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Company, where Tajon Buchanan yielded a winner of the 80th minute for the visitors to break Barca's 17 game unbeaten run in the competition.
Villarreal took the lead within four minutes, while ayoze Perez cooled the recurring Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
Nevertheless, Lamine Yamal hit teenagers back for Barca, who then led during the break after Fermin Lopez ended up on the back of Yamal who hit the bar.
Villarreal, however, showed their own recovery powers in the second half, with Santi Comesana quickly recovering parity.
That paved the way for Buchanan to lock Gerard Moreno's excellent cross and push Villarreal in a lead that they did not inform, because the yellow submarine confirmed the Champions League football for next season.
Prepárate, @ChampionsLeague. 𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗠𝗢𝗦 𝗩𝗨𝗘𝗟𝗧𝗔 𝗩𝗨𝗘𝗟𝗧𝗔. pic.twitter.com/fmjopqwifg
– Villarreal CF (@Villarrealcf) 18 May 2025
Data Debrief: sharp shooting Barca falls short
This season, Barca scored 23 goals from outside the area in all competitions, which is their highest count in a single campaign since 2018-19 (also 23).
The Blaugrana had a total of 24 shots, but their 1.26 expected goals suggest that they did not generate opportunities for the caliber.
On the other hand, Villarreal, who has now won three of their last four road races against Barca in Laliga, with 1.75 xg of just seven attempts – an impressive 0.25 xg per shot.
Line-ups
Barcelona XI: Lewandowski, Ter Stegen, I. Martinez, Raphinha, Eric Garcia, Pedri, Gavi, Fermín López, Yamal, Gerard Martín, Cubarsi
Subs: Szczesny, Christensen, Olmo, Pena, De Jong, Fati, Balde, Casado, Pau Víctor, Pablo Torre, Dominguez, Héctor Fort
Villarreal XI: Parejo, Ayoze Perez, Pepe, Santi Comesaña, Foyth, Logan Costa, Álex Baena, Yeremy, Sergi Cardona, Luiz Júnior, Pau Navarro
Subs: Femenia, Denis Suarez, G. Moreno, Bailly, Pedraza, Pape Gueye, Diego Conde, Buchanan, Willy Kambwala, Etta Eyong, Thierno Barry