BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Barcelona needed an own goal to eke out a 1-0 win at relegation-threatened Leganes and protect its lead of the Spanish league on Saturday.
Leganes central defender Jorge Sáenz slid to stop a pass by Raphinha bound for Robert Lewandowski and inadvertently pushed it into his own net for the game’s only goal in the 48th minute.
The error spoiled an otherwise strong performance from the southern Madrid side, which generated more scoring chances than the front-runners.
The hard-earned win extended Barcelona’s lead to seven points over Real Madrid before the titleholders visit Alaves on Sunday. After this weekend there are seven rounds left, including a “clasico” next month.
Leganes shocked Barcelona 1-0 in December, during a dip in form by the Catalan club. But since the start of 2025, Barcelona has now gone 24 games without a loss and is in the running for a treble of titles including the Copa del Rey, where it has reached the final against Madrid in two weeks.
Hansi Flick’s side kept up is momentum before it visits Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday aiming to make good on its 4-0 first-leg win in their Champions League quarterfinal.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Joseph Wilson, The Associated Press
