Barcelona are back in first place in the La Liga table for the first time in two months thanks to a hard-fought 1-0 win against Rayo Vallecano at the Montjuïc Olympic Stadium on Monday night. Barça were not even close to their best and were made to suffer by an intense and well-coached Rayo side, but a first half Robert Lewandowski penalty was enough to separate the two sides and give Barça all three points to put them back on top of the standings with 14 games to go.
FIRST HALF
Barça made a strong start to the game, taking advantage of Rayo’s high pressing to find spaces in behind and create some big opportunities. Raphinha had two monster chances early on and missed both, and Lamine Yamal also wasted a golden…