The Camp Nou was back, and so were the goals. Barcelona kicked off their first home match of the 2026/27 LaLiga season with a 2-0 win over Athletic Club, as captain Raphinha opened the scoring before Fermin sealed it late on a night that also marked Rodri’s debut for the club.
Raphinha breaks the deadlock
After a minute’s silence held for members who passed away last season and for victims of the recent flooding in Nepal and China, Barcelona dominated from kickoff. Pedri’s through ball split the Athletic defence and Raphinha rounded goalkeeper Unai Simon to slot home in the first half. Lamine Yamal, the standout threat all evening, struck the crossbar eight minutes into the second period as the hosts pushed for a second.
Fermin seals it after Rodri’s debut
The much-anticipated moment for Cules arrived on 62 minutes when Rodrigo came on for his Barcelona debut alongside Dani Olmo. The second goal followed in the 82nd minute: substitute Karim Adeyemi’s low cross was not cleared by Aymeric Laporte, and Fermin was on hand to control and score. Simon finished with seven saves as Athletic struggled to contain the hosts.
Where the table stands
| Team | Points (after 2 matches) |
|---|---|
| Barcelona | 6 |
| Real Madrid | 6 |
| Real Betis | 6 |
| Sevilla | 6 |
| Athletic Club | 0 |
| Real Sociedad | 0 |
The win leaves Barcelona level on six points with Real Madrid, Real Betis and Sevilla at the top of the early LaLiga table, while Athletic and Real Sociedad remain bottom without a point. With his debut behind him and a statement home win banked, the new-look Barcelona already looks like an early title pace-setter, with record transfer moves across the league adding to the drama.
