BARCELONA, April 11 (Reuters) - Barcelona took a major step towards retaining their LaLiga title with a 4-1 home victory over city rivals Espanyol on Saturday, moving nine points clear of second-placed Real Madrid.
Ferran Torres struck twice, assisted by Lamine Yamal both times, firstwith a header from a corner in the 10th minutebefore doubling the lead in the 25th, racing clear from another Yamal pass.
Espanyol pulled one back in the 56th minute when Pol Lozano fired in a rebound from just inside the box, but Yamal restored control in the 87th on a quick counter, with Marcus Rashford adding a fourth from Frenkie De Jong's cross.
Barca moved to 79 points with seven games left, while Real lost ground after a 1-1 draw with Girona nL6N40T18W on Friday.
"It’s not over until we’ve won the league, but it's only up to us and that's a great feeling," Torres told DAZN.
"It was a tough, hard-fought match, the scoreline doesn't tell the whole story. It was close, some little mistakes almost cost us dearly. But we're proud of our performance."
Flick selected a full-strength side despite Tuesday's Champions League quarter-final, second leg at Atletico Madrid looming, where Barcelona must overturn a 2-0 first-leg deficit suffered at the Camp Nou.
TORRES DOES EARLY DAMAGE HELPED BY YAMAL
Torres did the early damage, scoring twice in a dominant first half shaped by the irrepressible Yamal.
The 18-year-old provided both assists as Barca monopolised possession, though clear-cut openings were at a premium.
The breakthrough came when Yamal floated a corner from the right towards the far post. Goalkeeper Marko Dmitrovic clashed awkwardly with a teammate inside the six-yard box, leaving Torres with the simplest of tasks to nod into an unguarded net.
Torres then doubled the advantage after another incisive contribution from Yamal.
The winger dominated the ball close to the right touchline and threaded a perfectly weighted pass through the defence, allowing the forward to race clear, beat the offside trap and guide a composed finish past the advancing Dmitrovic.
Espanyol nearly responded immediately, Tyrhys Dolan rattling the bar with an angled strike from inside the area.
However, it was not until the 56th minute that thevisitors found hope as Edu Exposito burst forward on the right and delivered a cross that was only half-cleared.
The loose ball fell invitingly to Lozano and he drove an unstoppable shot just inside the left post to cut the deficit.
Espanyol pressed with more urgency and Barca wobbled briefly as the contest grew in intensity. But the hosts regained control in the 87th after another unfortunate incident for Dmitrovic.
Marc Casado's long pass was miscontrolled by the Espanyol keeper, whose attempted clearance cannoned off Yamal and dropped kindly for the teenage sensation to tap into an empty net.
Two minutes later the points were beyond doubt. De Jong controlled a loose ball on the right side of the box and lobbed the ball into the box for Rashford, who steered a close-range volley home to complete a convincing derby triumph.
(Reporting by Fernando Kallas in Madrid, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
