Raphinha double helps Barcelona end Aston Villa’s perfect European start

Barcelona beat Aston Villa 3-0 at the Camp Nou on Tuesday, ending the visitors' winning start to the Champions League league phase. Lamine Yamal opened the scoring before Raphinha added two goals after the interval. Villa had arrived with victories over Club Brugge, Fenerbahce and Viking, according to BBC Sport, but remained on nine points after their fourth match.

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Yamal struck in the seventh minute after an inaccurate pass from Joao Gomes presented him with possession inside Villa's penalty area. Opta Analyst reported that the goal took the Barcelona forward to 14 Champions League goals as a teenager, moving him beyond Kylian Mbappe's previous record of 13. It came on Yamal's 37th appearance in the competition.

Raphinha extended the lead in the 52nd minute with a shot that took a deflection on its way past Zion Suzuki. Twelve minutes later, Joao Cancelo supplied a low cross with the outside of his foot and Raphinha finished for his second. Opta's report said the Brazilian moved level with Robert Lewandowski on 23 Champions League goals for Barcelona, behind only Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez.

Villa had opportunities to change the course of the game before Barcelona pulled away. BBC Sport reported first-half chances for Matty Cash, Gomes and Johan Manzambi, while Leon Goretzka struck the post after the break. At the other end, Suzuki prevented Anthony Gordon from scoring after another attempt to play out from defence left the visitors exposed.

The match statistics published by Sports Mole showed Barcelona finishing with 65% possession and 16 shots to Villa's nine. The hosts put eight attempts on target, compared with one for Villa. The result lifted Barcelona above the English side in the league-phase standings, with both clubs having collected nine points from their opening four matches.

Speaking afterwards, Emery said Villa needed to improve their finishing and still had work to do to reach Barcelona's level, BBC Sport reported. He declined to blame Gomes for the opening goal and described the match as useful experience for his players. Villa's next assignment is a Premier League visit to Manchester United on Sunday.