Barcelona Stun Celta 4-3 in Dramatic Comeback Thriller
It was chaos. It was catharsis. And it was classic Barça.
On a sun-drenched evening at Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, FC Barcelona pulled off a sensational 4-3 comeback victory against a resilient Celta de Vigo side, snatching all three points with a 98th-minute penalty converted by a cold-blooded Raphinha, who capped off a two-goal performance in what is now his best scoring season yet in blaugrana.
With 48,569 fans in the stands and tensions high after their midweek Champions League progression, Barça started the match in control but were quickly dragged into a goal-for-goal slugfest that tested their title credentials to the core.
The game opened with a respectful minute’s silence for the Escobar Camprubí family, descendants of two former club presidents, who tragically died in a helicopter crash in New York. But once the whistle blew, the narrative flipped fast.
Ferran Torres kicked things off in the 12th minute with a brilliant solo effort, slicing into the box and curling one past Guaita. But Celta replied almost instantly, Borja Iglesias equalized just three minutes later after chaos in the Barcelona box. That was only the beginning.
By halftime, it was 1-1, but it felt like the calm before the storm.
After the break, things unraveled quickly for the Catalans. Iglesias capitalized on a defensive mishap to make it 1-2 in the 52nd minute and completed his hat-trick just ten minutes later with a cheeky chipped finish, stunning the home crowd into silence at 1-3.
But Hansi Flick wasn’t about to let this one go. Substitutions were made, Dani Olmo and Lamine Yamal came on, and the tide turned almost immediately.
Just two minutes after Iglesias’ third, Olmo slotted home from close range after a slick link-up between Lewandowski and Raphinha. The score: 2-3, and momentum shifting.
Then came a moment of magic from Yamal. The 16-year-old whipped in a vicious cross with his left foot that Raphinha powered into the net with a precise header, 3-3 in the 68th minute, and Montjuïc was rocking.
In the dying moments of added time, with both sides desperate for a winner, Olmo was brought down in the box. Raphinha stepped up, nerves of steel, and buried the penalty to complete a 4-3 comeback and his personal brace.
It was his 50th goal for the club, and none more crucial than this. The Brazilian’s brace now has Barça seven points clear at the top of La Liga, at least for now.
What This Means for Barça
- Raphinha hits 50 goals and leads the golden boot race for the club
- Dani Olmo proves vital off the bench with a goal and a won penalty
- Hansi Flick’s substitutions once again make the difference
- Borja Iglesias’ hat-trick goes in vain despite a heroic effort
- Barcelona sit top of La Liga, extending their lead in the title race
With Mallorca next, followed by a Copa del Rey final and a Champions League semifinal against Inter, this victory may just be the spark that lights Barça’s end-of-season fire.
La Remontada spirit is alive and well in Catalonia.
