Barcelona tightened their grip on the La Liga title race with a convincing victory over Espanyol in the Catalan derby, moving nine points clear of Real Madrid at the top.
Ferran Torres opened the scoring early, rising highest to head in Lamine Yamal’s corner after just nine minutes.
Torres doubled both his and Barcelona’s tally midway through the first half, finishing coolly after being played through by another superb Yamal assist.
The 18-year-old Yamal, making his 100th appearance for the club, once again underlined his importance with a pair of assists in a dominant display.
Espanyol struggled to gain control but briefly threatened a comeback when Pol Lozano fired home in the 56th minute following a defensive block.
Fernando Calero later headed wide as the visitors searched for an equaliser.
Barcelona quickly regained control late on, sealing the win with two quick goals.
Yamal added a goal to his performance by finishing into an empty net, before Marcus Rashford came off the bench to volley home in the closing moments.
With seven games remaining and Real Madrid faltering, Hansi Flick’s side are firmly on course to retain the title.
Attention now turns to Europe, where Barcelona face a tough task in the Champions League against Atletico Madrid, needing to overturn a two-goal deficit in the second leg.
Espanyol, meanwhile, remain winless in 14 league matches, though they sit in mid-table despite their struggles.
