Osasuna Falls on the Road to FC Barcelona 2-0

A Solid Defensive Performance is Unable to Stop Barça

Osasuna (4-3-9, 15 points) fell 2-0 on the road to FC Barcelona (14-1-2, 43 points) at Spotify Camp Nou on Saturday night. Despite a solid defensive performance by Los Rojillos, a second half brace by forward Raphinha gave the three points to Los Culers.

Osasuna was solid defensively in the first half, showing strong organization and constant cover to deny clear chances and limit Barcelona largely to long-range shots. The visitors also threatened early, with forward Ante Budimir forcing two saves from Joan Garcia. Barcelona found the net through forward Ferran Torres, but the goal was ruled out by VAR for offside in the buildup. Forward Víctor Muñoz caused problems on the counter and set Budimir through one-on-one, but the play was again halted for offside.

Barcelona pushed forward after the break, though Osasuna created the first clear chance of the second half when Muñoz broke away on a solo counterattack and fired just wide. At the other end, forward Marcus Rashford had a good opportunity from inside the box that was blocked by defender Íñigo Arguibide, and Raphinha opened the scoring by finishing a transition from the edge of the area. Osasuna tried to respond, but Barcelona controlled possession. Defender Jorge Herrando appeared to equalize on a set piece, but the referee disallowed the goal for a prior foul. Raphinha sealed the result late to make it 2-0.

Osasuna’s next match is Wednesday, Dec. 17, at 7 p.m., at El Alcoraz against SD Huesca in the Copa del Rey round of 32.