Barcelona 3-2 Celta Vigo: 5 talking points as Blaugrana produce incredible late comeback to snatch all 3 points | La Liga 2023-24
Barcelona fought back from two goals down to beat Celta Vigo 3-2 in La Liga on Saturday (September 23).
A quickfire brace from Robert Lewandowski coupled with a strike from Joao Cancelo helped wipe out Celta Vigo's lead in a stunning turn of events. Los Celeste were in control of the game for large swathes, with Jorgen Strand Larsen opening the scoring in the 19th minute.
Barcelona were uncharacteristically subdued, looking sloppy at the back while offering no great shakes going forward. That came back to bite them in the 76th minute when Anastasios Douvikas doubled Celta's advantage with another cool finish beyond Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
It seemed like the Galician side had the game in the bag, but the Blaugrana sprung to life in the final 10 minutes to secure a memorable win. Lewandowski triggered the comeback in the 81st minute with a scrappy finish and then made it 2-2 just four minutes later.
There was more drama to follow, as Cancelo completed the turnaround in the penultimate minute of normal time. Barcelona moved atop the standings with 16 points from six games, while Celta remain in 17th with four points.
On that note, here're the five talking points from the game:
#5 Barcelona make a comeback for the ages
When Anastasios Douvikas made it 2-0 for Celta Vigo, it seemed like Barcelona were headed for their first top-flight defeat of the season. The Blaugrana had looked subdued for most of the game as Los Celestes had come back to haunt them again.
However, in the final 10 minutes of normal time, Xavi's swashbuckling team struck thrice to turn the game on its head. For Barcelona, it was a victory they won't forget for a long time.
#4 Barcelona's bogey team Celta Vigo nearly cause another upset
Celta Vigo are one of those teams that Barcelona often struggle against. In fact, the Blaugrana had won just five of their last 12 clashes with the Galician outfit before Saturday and were on course for another setback.
For a long time, Celta were on the stronger foot, keeping a water-tiight defence to deny their might hosts much space to work into while causing them problems on the break.
It seemed like Celta had this game in the bag, but Barca had other ideas.
#3 Robert Lewandowski cannot be stopped
Barcelona made an epic comeback, and Robert Lewandowski didn't score? Unlikely. The Polish ace was at the heart of their emphatic victory, scoring twice in four minutes to bring his side level.
Lewandowski triggered the comeback by latching onto a chipped pass from Joao Felix to lob the ball over Celta goalkeeper, Ivan Villar. Five minutes from time, the former Bayern Munich ace connected to o a cross from Cancelo and planted it into the back of the net.
That's now five goals in La Liga and and six across competitions for Lewandowski this campaign.
#2 Celta Vigo have been stronger on the road
Celta Vigo have seen a strange pattern this season, struggling at home but performing well on the road.
Interestingly, Los Celestes have lost all three of their home games in La Liga this season, failing to score in each of them, but have had no issues finding the net while playing away.
Against Real Sociedad, in their first away game of the season, Rafael BenÃtez's side drew 1-1. They then beat Almeria 3-2 in another late win. Celta kept Barcelona at bay for large swathes but had to return empty-handed eventually.
#1 Barcelona lay down the gauntlet for Real Madrid
With their spectacular win, Barcelona climbed atop the La Liga table with 16 points from six games, ahead of Girona, who also have accrued the same number of points, on goal difference.
Real Madrid are the only side with a 100% win record in the division and play city rivals Atletico Madrid away from home on Sunday. It's their biggest game of the season thus far, and one where the likelihood of dropping points is high.
It's not that the Rojiblancos are in good form. Diego Simeone's team were crushed 3-0 by Valencia last weekend and drew 1-1 with Lazio in the Champions League on Tuesday, but in a high-intensity derby, form goes out the window.
Nonetheless, if Real Madrid end up dropping points, Barcelona will remain top of the table at the end of a gameweek for the first time this season, by virtue of a better goal difference.