Sports Desk
BARCELONA: FC Barcelona moved eight points clear of Real Madrid at the top of La Liga after beating Sevilla 3-nil at Camp Nou on Sunday night with goals from Jordi Alba, Gavi, and Raphinha.
Alba opened scoring with a side-footed finish in the 58th minute after an uneventful first half.
Gavi netted Raphinha’s cross to double the lead after 71 minutes before Raphinha rounded off the scoring by tapping home Alba’s cross.
Following the defeat, Sevilla are now 16th with only two points clear of relegation.
Barcelona captain Sergio Busquets had to go off with an ankle injury after only four minutes.
Barcelona to host Man United in Europa League play-off
Barca will now faceoff Manchester United in the first leg of their Europa League play-off tie on February 16.
Earlier on Saturday, title rivals Real Madrid were unable to cut Barcelona’s lead to two points amid a 1-nil loss to Mallorca.
The last 12 months have been remarkable for Barca under manager Xavi Hernandez. The Catalan club were 17 points behind Los Blancos, albeit with a game in hand, at this stage last season.
