Barcelona Player Ratings vs. Villarreal: Yamal Makes History in Convincing Win

A sensational Lamine Yamal ignited Barça’s dominant win.

Lamie Yamal (left) and Fermín López orchestrated Barcelona’s victory. | Javier Borrego/Europa Press/Getty Images

Barcelona continued their perfect record at the renovated Camp Nou, defeating Villarreal 4–1 on Saturday afternoon thanks to Lamine Yamal’s first career hat-trick.

The hosts looked significantly better from the start and two first half strikes from Yamal—the second of which was a thing of beauty—saw them go into the break with a commanding lead.

Villarreal responded early in the second half through Pape Gueye, leading to some tense minutes of uncertainty. However, Yamal completed his hat-trick with a precise hit to restore the two-goal lead and Robert Lewandowski finished the job with a stoppage time tap-in.

Yamal stole the show but it was a dominant Barcelona effort overall that will see them take a momentary four point lead in the La Liga title race. The win also boosts confidence ahead of a seemingly impossible quest to overcome a four-goal deficit in the Copa del Rey semifinals on Tuesday.

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The One Thing We Can’t Ignore

Lamine Yamal was unplayable vs. Villarreal. | David Ramirez/Soccrates/Getty Images

Today was one of those games where Yamal validates those who consider him the best player in the world. Villarreal simply had no answers for the dazzling teenager, leading to his maiden career hat-trick.

Barcelona’s magician toyed with defenders who dared to try and stop him, tirelessly taking on his markers and getting the better of them seemingly every time with his now renowned dribbling ability.

But it was his devastating quality in front of goal, which has been perhaps the biggest flaw in his game since his eruption, that defined his performance. Yamal opened the scoring with a cool yet emphatic finish on a breakaway, tucking the ball into the bottom corner with poise.

Yamal’s second was his masterpiece, dribbling past defenders before curling a bullet into the top corner with his trademark finish—which he had struggled to convert in recent games. He then completed his hat-trick in another breakaway, placing his shot with tremendous precision just inside the post to secure a milestone career moment and the three points.

It was one of the greatest afternoons in Yamal’s career, a game where he put it all together and reached new heights.

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Barcelona Player Ratings vs. Villarreal (4-3-3)

Even Yamal’s teammates were in awe of his second strike. | Javier Borrego/Europa Press/Getty Images

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

GK: Joan García—7.2: A comfortable afternoon for the goalkeeper who barely had to intervene, yet there was nothing he could do to avoid Villarreal’s strike from short range.

RB: Jules Koundé—8.6: Recovered from a shaky start with a crucial block that settled him down. Looked comfortable defensively the rest of the way and had a handful of dangerous incursions down the wing which saw him collect an assist.

CB: Pau Cubarsí—7.1: The best Cubarsí’s looked in a while in terms of deploying the high line. Otherwise, he was stout in his defensive assignments and often drifted towards the wing to cover for Koundé when he pushed forward, making some well-timed interventions to halt counter-attacks.

CB: Eric García—7.8: Solid showing from García, who pocketed Ayoze Pérez emphatically. He stayed tight in his marking efforts and didn’t put a foot wrong.

LB: Alejandro Balde—7.2: Balde triumphed in his personal battle with Nicolas Pépé, but he was unusually tentative going forward, opting to stay well-positioned defensively rather than darting down the wing as he often does—perhaps an instruction from Flick.

CM: Fermín López—9.0: The perfect mix between intensity and class, his trademark energy saw him chase down defenders to generate turnovers but his quality on the ball was also on full display, bagging a pair of assists.

CM: Marc Bernal—7.2: Many in Barcelona have tagged Bernal as Sergio Busquets’s heir apparent, and as he calmly recycled possession under duress on countless occasions, he showed flashes of the former Barça No. 5.

CM: Dani Olmo—7.1: It wasn’t Olmo’s influential performance in attack, but the Spaniard was still active in possession, working as more of a distributor than a creator.

RW: Lamine Yamal—9.7: Looked engaged and menacing from the starting whistle, dribbling through defenders all game with alarming ease and bagging his first hat-trick. His second goal was a work of art.

ST: Ferran Torres—6.2: Another quiet performance from Torres who was never really put in a position to thrive—a constant for Barça strikers as of late.

LW: Raphinha—7.8: Lacked sharpness and was overall outshone by his wing twin, but the Brazilian’s high motor in pressing continues to be key for Flick’s system to thrive. Still. must be held responsible for losing his assignment and playing Pape Gueye onside for Villarreal’s goal.

SUB: Pedri (59’ for Olmo)—7.9: Entered the contest and immediately played a breathtaking through-ball to assist Yamal’s third.

SUB: Ronald Araújo (67’ for Bernal)—6.3: Was able to focus on distributing the ball from the back as he was never tested defensively after entering the contest.

SUB: Robert Lewandowski (67’ for Torres)—7.4: Had just 11 touches but one of those sufficed to score his 11th La Liga goal of the term.

SUB: Marcus Rashford (73’ for Raphinha)—6.9: Made a brilliant run but opted against trying his luck on goal and instead misplaced a pass for Koundé. Didn’t get a chance to make an impression afterwards.

SUB: Roony Bardghji (73’ for Yamal)—6.1: Couldn’t leave a mark after coming on.

Subs not used: Eder Aller (GK), Wojciech Szczęsny (GK, João Cancelo, Marc Casadó, Tommy Marques.

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What the Ratings Tell Us

Fermín López enjoyed himself against Villarreal. | David Ramirez/Soccrates/Getty Images

• It took Pedri just half an hour on the pitch to showcase why he’s widely considered as the best central midfielder in the world. Back fully fit and in stellar form, his return from injury is vital for Barcelona’s silverware hopes, especially with Frenkie de Jong now sidelined for a considerable time.
• Jules Koundé might’ve had some nervy moments to start, but from the fifth minute onwards he was back to his 2024–25 version. The Frenchman is stringing together some quietly solid showings, and with João Cancelo pushing for more minutes, as of now it would seem they’d have to come at Alejandro Balde’s expense.
• Fermín López has left behind a minor slump and looks back to the top form he displayed at the turn of the year. The attacking midfielder was the perfect sidekick for Yamal, as he’s been for other Barça attackers in the past. His influence will be pivotal for the Catalans’ success in the coming months.

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The Numbers That Explain Barcelona’s Decisive Win

Robert Lewandowski was back among the goals. | Manuare Quintero/AFP/Getty Images

• Barcelona scored four goals from eight shots on target, emphatically over-performing their 2.96 xG. The clinical performance is an encouraging sign after stringing together a number of wasteful performances.
• Apart from Gueye’s strike from a few yards out, Villarreal didn’t muster a single shot on goal at any other point in the game.
• Barcelona completed 506 more passes than the visitors, dictating the game and refusing to share the ball, resulting in a lopsided split with the hosts finishing with 74% possession.

Statistic	Barcelona	Villarreal
Possession	74%	26%
Expected Goals (xG)	2.96	1.29
Total Shots	19	6
Shots on Target	8	1
Big Chances	6	3
Passing Accuracy	91%	76%
Fouls Committed	11	9
Corners	3	2

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