Barcelona defeat Osasuna 2-1 and move closer to winning La Liga
Barcelona are one step closer to clinching the La Liga title after narrowly beating Osasuna 2-1 on Saturday at El Sadar in the 34th round of the competition.
With this result, the Catalan side raised their tally to 88 points in first place, 14 points clear of runners-up Real Madrid, who host Espanyol on Sunday, and any result other than a win would mean Barcelona were officially crowned champions.
Osasuna, who have won just one of their last 5 matches in the competition, lost two and drawn in the same matches, are frozen at 42 points in tenth place.
The first half ended in a negative draw after intensive attempts by both teams, as the first chance came for Poland's Robert Lewandowski, after he received a reverse pass from Dani Olmo, but the Barcelona striker did not succeed in directing his shot over the crossbar.
Olmo then fired a shot over the net from distance in an incomplete opportunity, and Osasuna almost scored the opposite before the end of the first half, as Ante Budimir shot a ball that hit the outside post, and then Juan Garcia denied it moments later.
In the second half, the Blaugrana waited until the 81st minute when Robert Lewandowski opened the scoring with a powerful header, after a neat cross from English substitute Marcus Rashford.
Substitute Ferran Torres doubled the lead with a second goal in the 86th minute after converting Fermin López's pass into the net, but Ruben Garcia ignited the final minutes by reducing the deficit for Osasuna by taking advantage of Abel Brittones' cross, to turn it into the goal with a header in the 88th minute.
If Real Madrid win, the gap will be close to 11 points, making the Clásico match between the two teams at the Camp Nou on May 11 crucial in determining the identity of the champion, as it will be fraught with excitement and suspense, and the expectations remain dependent on the results of the upcoming matches, especially the decisive matches that will determine the features of the Spanish football season.