Lewandowski Scores and the Five Things We Learnt As Barcelona Blitz Betis to Get Back on Title Track

• FC Barcelona are soon to dethrone Real Madrid as La Liga champions following their comprehensive win over Real Betis
• Goals from Andreas Christensen, Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and an own goal from Rodriguez gave Xavi's side a straightforward win
• They stretch their lead to 11 points over closest rivals Los Blancos

Barcelona picked Real Betis apart at Camp Nou on Saturday evening as the Catalan giants returned to winning ways following their midweek slump at Rayo Vallecano.

The league leaders raced to a three-goal lead before halftime before adding the icing on the cake late on in the second half as Xavi's men tightened their grip at the top of La Liga.

Sports Brief takes a look at the five talking points from Barca's emphatic victory:

Lewandowski responds to Benzema

Robert Lewandowski gave a perfect response to Karim Benzema's Pichichi shout after the Frenchman closed the gap between himself and the Barcelona marksman to a goal in the race for the La Liga's top scorer's award.

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However, the Polish goal wizard ensured some breathing space between himself and Benzema when he netted in his second successive game against Real Betis on Saturday, taking his tally to 19 goals.

He also rattled the post just as Benzema did against UD Almeria but was two goals shy of repeating the reigning Ballon d'Or holder's hattrick feat.

Barcelona make numerical advantage count

Not to take anything away from Barca's thumping victory. Nevertheless, their 4-0 triumph would have been difficult had it not been for the first half red card, which saw Edgar Gonzalez receive his marching orders.

At the point of his exit, Barcelona were leading by an Andreas Christensen header and three minutes later, Xavi's charges put the game beyond bed with two quickfire goals from Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha before Ansu Fati forced an own goal to embellish the scoreline.

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Playing the better part of the game with 10 men, Betis struggled to fashion out chances while trying to contain Barcelona's attack, who were smelling blood from the onset.

Barca unveils latest prospect

From Lionel Messi to Ansu Fati, FC Barcelona have proven to be a haven for honing NextGen talents, with the latest from the famous La Masia academy unleashed by the Catalan giants against Real Betis.

Lamine Yamal, aged just 15, was subbed on in the 86th minute for Gavi, becoming Barcelona’s youngest debutant in the 21st century.

Although not getting his name on the scoresheet, Yamal showed glimpses of what the future holds as he dazzled with the ball at his feet and even came close to providing an assist in his first competitive game for Barcelona.

Injury boost for Catalan giants

Barcelona's pursuit for their first La Liga crown since the 2018-19 season has been given a major boost following the return of influential winger Ousmane Dembele and centre-half Andreas Christensen.

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The duo made their respective return to action following varying injury layoffs, with Christensen even marking his comeback with a powerful header to open the floodgates for Barcelona while Dembele played his first minutes in three months.

Their return will help the Catalan giants as they seek to secure the league crown after enduring a bad patch of form, which saw Xavi's men fail to score a goal in back-to-back games and slip to a shock loss to Rayo Vallecano.

Raphinha masterclass seals win

The Brazilian has received a lot of stick for his antics after substitutions and, most especially, for some sub-par performances in the absence of Dembele. However, the former Leeds United talisman put in a superlative display.

It came as little to no surprise he was adjudged the official man-of-the-match after his goal, and assist helped Barcelona return to winning ways after their midweek disappointment.

Raphinha would hope to sustain his performance, especially following the return of Dembele, which could reduce his game time owing to how the latter is held in high esteem by head coach Xavi Hernandez.