LAGOS: The new European football season roared into life over the weekend, with two of the continent’s biggest clubs Barcelona and Liverpool beginning their title defences in emphatic fashion.
In Spain, defending La Liga champions Barcelona opened their campaign with a 3-0 win away at Mallorca, a match shaped heavily by early red cards for the hosts.
It took just seven minutes for Barça’s prolific duo to combine once again, as Lamine Yamal’s curling cross found Raphinha, who nodded home from close range.
The Catalans doubled their advantage midway through the half when Ferran Torres’s long range strike was allowed to stand despite protests from Mallorca players, who argued play should have been stopped with one of their men down injured.
Mallorca’s night quickly unravelled. Manu Morlanes was dismissed in the 29th minute after a second yellow card, and ten minutes later striker Vedat Muriqi was shown a straight red after catching goalkeeper Joan García in the head with a high boot.
With the game all but decided, Yamal added a third in stoppage time, curling into the top corner to seal the points. Barcelona were without star striker Robert Lewandowski due to injury, but new signing Marcus Rashford made his debut off the bench in the second half.
Goalkeeper Joan García, a summer arrival from city rivals Espanyol, enjoyed a quiet debut as Barça began their title defence in commanding style.
Across the Channel, Liverpool kicked off their Premier League title defence in thrilling fashion, edging Bournemouth 4-2 in an emotional night at Anfield.
The game began with a minute’s silence for Diogo Jota and his brother, who tragically died in a car accident earlier this summer. Liverpool channeled that emotion into a strong start, with debutant Hugo Ekitike scoring in the 37th minute before setting up Cody Gakpo’s strike early in the second half.
But Bournemouth hit back dramatically through Antoine Semenyo, who struck twice in 12 minutes to level the score at 2-2, raising questions over Arne Slot’s game management after multiple substitutions.
The Reds, however, found their response. New signing Federico Chiesa marked his debut with an 88th-minute winner, before Mohamed Salah already the Premier League’s most prolific opening-weekend scorer sealed victory deep into stoppage time.
Liverpool’s late surge spared them from an opening-day upset and highlighted the attacking depth in their squad, with Florian Wirtz and Ekitike also impressing on debut.
Both champions showed flashes of vulnerability Barcelona relying on Mallorca’s indiscipline and Liverpool nearly throwing away a two-goal lead but their attacking quality shone through when it mattered.
For now, La Liga and Premier League title defences are firmly on track, with Barcelona and Liverpool reminding rivals why they sit at the top of their respective leagues.
