Marcus Rashford scored twice and Fermin Lopez scored a hat-trick for Barcelona in a 6-1 defeat of Olympiacos on Tuesday, putting the Catalan giants back on track in the Champions League.
Teenage star Lamine Yamal also scored for Hansi Flick’s team, which lost their previous European league match against holders Paris Saint-Germain.
After a Lopez double, Ayoub El Kaabi scored a penalty for the Greek champions, but Santiago Hezze’s red card allowed injury-hit Barcelona to score a hat-trick and move into third place provisionally.
Flick was without Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, and several other regulars, but his players were able to create some confidence at the Olympic stadium ahead of the Clasico against Real Madrid on Sunday in La Liga.
Barcelona only narrowly defeated Girona in a close Catalan derby on Saturday, and they nearly fell down early against the Greeks.
Alejandro Balde gave the ball away, and experienced goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny had to reach down low to stop Daniel Podence.
Balde swiftly made apologies in attack, with his powerful dashes allowing Barca to slice apart the visitors.
Rashford volleyed barely over after 17-year-old playmaker Dro Fernandez and Balde linked up on the left.
Balde played again as Barcelona took an early lead, feeding Lopez, who played in Yamal.
Olympiacos goalkeeper Konstantinos Tzolakis did an excellent job of dispossessing the teenage winger, but Lopez was ready to bundle in the loose ball.
Rashford fired a free kick into the side netting as Barcelona dominated the game, despite a lack of defensive intensity, which has been a persistent issue this season.
Lopez scored his second goal after 39 minutes, assisted by Dro on his Champions League debut. Tzolakis saved his header from Yamal’s cross in the second half.
Olympiacos responded with a goal from Moroccan striker El Kaabi, which was disallowed for offside.
El Kaabi gave his team a chance, but their chances were short-lived. Barca’s Marc Casado received a second yellow card for a seemingly minor contact with Hezze.
He won a penalty after tumbling under Tzolakis’ challenge, and Yamal sent the goalkeeper the wrong way to extend Barca’s lead after 68 minutes. Rashford, on loan from Manchester United, had two goals in two games.
Rashford twice beat Tzolakis with superb low near-post finishes to reach four goals in the Champions League this season, following his brace in their win against Newcastle.
