- FC Barcelona 2-1 Girona : Pedri 13’, Araujo 90+3 – Witsel 21’
A ping-pong battle. That’s the simplest way to describe the wild, back-and-forth encounter between Barcelona and Girona. The 2-1 final scoreline — secured in the dying minutes — doesn’t fully reflect how thrilling, chaotic, and wide open this Catalan derby truly was. Barcelona left it late, but a last-gasp header from Ronald Araújo sent them back to the top of La Liga, at least until Real Madrid play on Sunday.
Still playing at the Olympic Stadium in Montjuïc — the historic site of the 1992 Olympics — Barça entered the match filled with doubts after their recent defeat to Sevilla. The question was how Xavi’s men would respond, and for the first 20 minutes, it looked like a statement performance was on the way.
After a strong spell of early possession, Pedri put Barça ahead in the 13th minute with a low, clinical strike from the edge of the box. It felt like the floodgates were about to open.
But instead of pushing on, Barcelona dropped off — and were punished for their recurring weakness on set pieces. From a corner, Girona equalized through Axel Witsel, who produced a stunning overhead kick after Arnau Martínez’s clever headed assist.
From there, Girona smelled blood. The visitors hit on the counter with frightening pace — Vladyslav Vanat missed a one-on-one with Szczęsny, and Portu saw his curling effort come back off the post. Within a minute, Barça were inches away from going behind twice.
What followed was pure end-to-end football. Girona’s high pressing and direct play continued to trouble Barça’s fragile backline, with Gÿl and Witsel both squandering chances to give the visitors the lead.
Barcelona eventually regained control of possession, but Girona’s defense — compact, brave, and superbly organized — held strong deep into stoppage time. Then came the decisive moment. In the 93rd minute, Ronald Araújo rose above everyone to power home a Frenkie de Jong cross, sealing a dramatic 2-1 win.
It wasn’t vintage Barcelona — far from it — but the resilience shown in the closing minutes could prove vital in the title race. Despite defensive lapses and Girona’s missed chances, the Blaugrana found a way to win when it mattered most.
With this hard-fought victory, Barcelona climb to the top of La Liga, at least temporarily — and perhaps, just perhaps, regain a bit of the confidence they had been missing.