Sevilla handed Barcelona their first La Liga defeat of the season on Sunday, ending the defending champions' unbeaten start with a convincing 4-1 victory. The loss at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán Stadium was Barcelona's second consecutive defeat in all competitions and prevented them from reclaiming the top spot in the league table. The result leaves Hansi Flick's side in second place with 19 points, two behind leaders Real Madrid.
The hosts established their dominance early, taking the lead in the 13th minute after Ronald Araujo fouled Isaac Romero in the box. Alexis Sanchez converted the resulting penalty to put Sevilla ahead. Romero doubled the lead ten minutes before the break, finishing off a swift counter-attack. Barcelona found a lifeline just before halftime when Marcus Rashford scored with a left-footed volley from a Pedri pass to make it 2-1.
Barcelona’s best opportunity to level the match came and went in the 76th minute. After Alejandro Balde was brought down in the area by Adnan Januzaj, Robert Lewandowski stepped up to take the penalty but sent his shot wide of the post. Sevilla capitalized on the missed opportunity, sealing the victory with late goals. Jose Angel Carmona made it 3-1 in the 90th minute before substitute Akor Adams added a fourth in stoppage time.
After the match, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick accepted the result but praised his team's response in the second half. "The first half wasn’t good... we had no solutions to play out," Flick said. "But in the second half, the reaction, I appreciate a lot. What we did, how we played, it was really good to see... when we start again after the break, we will fight." Midfielder Pedri offered a more critical take, stating, "We lacked intensity, we couldn't get the ball out of our half... We need to improve a lot of things."
The win was Sevilla's first in the league against Barcelona since 2015 and provisionally lifts them to fourth in the table. Goalscorer Jose Angel Carmona expressed his delight, calling it "one of the happiest days of my life." He added, "We deserved to win from start to finish." Both teams will now head into the international break before returning to La Liga action on October 18, when Barcelona hosts Girona and Sevilla travels to Mallorca.
