Osasuna 4-2 Barcelona: Zaragoza stars as Los Rojillos stun LaLiga leaders in six-goal thriller
Osasuna experienced a remarkable evening as they triumphed over Barcelona with a score of 4-2 in La Liga. Bryan Zaragoza's impressive first-half goal and assist played a pivotal role in enabling the Rojillos to decisively break a streak of five matches without a victory against the Blaugrana.
The Rojillos demonstrated significant early aggression, particularly with their attempts to exploit the gaps behind Barcelona's youthful defense. However, the visitors initially held their ground, with Eric Garcia making a crucial block against a shot from Bryan Zaragoza.
Ante Budimir made a notable advance up the field shortly after the quarter-hour mark, unleashing a shot that narrowly missed the far post.
The Croatian forward soon opened the scoring, as Bryan created space from Jules Kounde and delivered a precise cross that Budimir met ahead of Pau Cubarsi, heading the ball expertly into the net.
Osasuna continued to apply pressure, creating further anxiety for the visitors when Inaki Pena rushed out of his area, only to clear the ball to Ruben Garcia, whose attempt struck Budimir.
Moments later, Pena found himself helpless on the ground as Bryan seized upon Pablo Ibanez’s expertly weighted through ball, skillfully maneuvering the ball around the goalkeeper before finding the back of the net.
Barcelona managed to regain some control but struggled to connect with Robert Lewandowski in their attacking plays. Kounde came closest to scoring just before halftime, heading the ball against the crossbar.
After the break, Barcelona worked to involve Lewandowski more in the game, but the striker's free-kick went agonizingly wide, and he was subsequently thwarted by Sergio Herrera.
However, the goalkeeper inadvertently provided the visitors with a chance to re-enter the match, as he threw the ball directly to Gerard Martin, who then set up Pau Victor for a shot that Herrera could not prevent as he stumbled back.
Lamine Yamal and Raphinha were brought onto the field shortly before the hour mark, as Osasuna found themselves under pressure. The home team rallied, with Budimir coming close to scoring before Ferran Torres made a run but was thwarted by Herrera.
Budimir subsequently restored his team's advantage by converting a penalty awarded for a foul by Sergi Dominguez, sending the ball beyond Pena's reach.
The evening was further highlighted by a remarkable goal from Abel Bretones in the 85th minute.
Although Yamal responded with a stunning goal of his own, Osasuna secured their fourth consecutive victory at El Sadar in a single La Liga season, a feat not achieved since March 2008.
This accomplishment is particularly significant as it came against a Barcelona team that had maintained an unblemished record in the league for the current season.
SportsLigue