Barcelona kicked off their LaLiga title defense impressively, securing a dominant 5-0 victory over Elche at the Estadio Manuel Martinez Valero.
New signing Rodri was not included in manager Hansi Flick’s matchday squad. However, England forward Anthony Gordon made a notable impression on his Barcelona debut, providing two assists as the champions cruised through their first match.
Raphinha opened the scoring with a penalty in the first half, setting the tone for the campaign. After the break, new recruit Borussia Dortmund‘s Karim Adeyemi added to the scoreline with a composed finish on his league debut.
Midway through the second half, Raphinha scored his second goal, aided by a pass from debutant Gordon, who had just entered the field.
Fermín López capped off the performance with two goals, including the fourth scored with another assist from Gordon, followed shortly by the fifth.
Flick’s squad is striving to secure a third consecutive championship, having bested their rivals Real Madrid in the previous two seasons.
They began the match aggressively against a team that finished 15th last season.
In the 14th minute, Fermín López delivered a superb through ball to Raphinha, who was fouled by Víctor Chust. Raphinha converted the resulting penalty against goalkeeper Matías Dituro.
Raphinha then provided an assist for Barça’s second goal, sending a pass into the path of Adeyemi, who made no mistake in netting his first for the club.
Gordon made an impactful debut, quickly setting up Raphinha for his second with almost his first touch after coming on.
Facundo Buonanotte, on loan from Brighton, came closest for Elche, hitting the woodwork in their only significant attempt to threaten Barça’s defense.
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Gordon enhanced his debut by assisting López’s fourth goal, selflessly passing the ball rather than shooting himself.
The final goal of the match was arguably the standout. Xavi Espart sent a pass to Fermín López, who brilliantly spun away from defender Federico Redondo before slotting the ball into the bottom corner to complete the rout.
A minor setback for Flick was the injury to Gavi, who had to be substituted at halftime and was replaced by Pedri. However, he was spotted on the pitch post-match, suggesting the issue is not serious.