Aubameyang gives Barca narrow win over Real Sociedad

GBNews24 Desk//

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s early goal proved enough as Barcelona sealed a 1-0 win over Real Sociedad on Thursday to tighten their grip on a top-four finish in La Liga.

But Barca’s run-in could be hampered after their defence was almost completely wiped out by injuries at Anoeta, with Dani Alves, Ronald Araujo and Gerard Pique all going off with problems while Jordi Alba appeared to play on in discomfort.

Barcelona relied on a combination of poor finishing from Real Sociedad and excellent saves from Marc-Andre ter Stegen to secure a big win in the chase for Champions League qualification.

“For long spells they dominated us, they had more of the ball than us – they are a great team, physically very strong. It’s a huge victory for us,” said Xavi.

Barcelona go back to second, six points clear of Real Betis in fifth, with a game in hand, and two ahead of Atletico Madrid in fourth. Atletico were held to a goalless draw by Granada on Wednesday.

Sevilla sit third after they held on for a 3-2 win away at Levante, Tecatito scoring twice in Valencia.

Real Sociedad might have had an outside chance of joining the race for the top four if they had beaten Barcelona but defeat surely leaves them looking to secure a spot in the Europa League. They are six points behind Atletico in fourth.

Aubameyang’s goal was his 11th for Barca since he joined the club in January and this one was particularly important, with his team eager to overturn an unexpected dip in form.

Xavi challenged his players on Wednesday to escape the “negative dynamic” after back-to-back defeats by Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League and Cadiz at Camp Nou.