Deportivo Alavés End Eight-Year Barcelona Hoodoo With Stoppage-Time Diabaté Strike to Escape Relegation Zone

Deportivo Alavés claimed one of the most significant results in their recent history on May 13, 2026, defeating LaLiga champions Barcelona 1-0 at the Estadio de Mendizorroza — their first victory over the Catalan club in eight years. The result ended Barcelona’s 11-game winning run and provided Alavés with a crucial lifeline in their battle against relegation.

The context surrounding Barcelona’s team selection was significant. Having secured their 29th LaLiga title just days earlier with a 2-0 El Clásico win over Real Madrid, head coach Hansi Flick opted to ring-fence his squad, making eight changes to his starting eleven. The decision reflected a season already won, though it came at the cost of competitive sharpness against a side fighting for top-flight survival.

Under the management of Quique Sánchez Flores, Alavés approached the match with a disciplined, defensively structured game plan. Deploying a five-man backline, the hosts nullified Barcelona’s attacking threat effectively, with neither side registering a shot on target throughout the opening 45 minutes. Robert Lewandowski and Marcus Rashford, among those fielded by Flick, struggled to impose themselves in the final third.

The decisive moment arrived in first-half stoppage time. Ibrahim Diabaté held off Barcelona midfielder Marc Bernal before unleashing a half-volley that gave Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny no chance, sending the hosts into the interval with a shock lead. Szczęsny was called upon again early in the second half when Diabaté connected with a powerful downward header, but the goalkeeper produced a sharp two-handed save to prevent the deficit from doubling.

In the closing stages, Barcelona applied sustained pressure, pinning Alavés deep into their own half in search of an equaliser. Despite the territorial dominance, the hosts’ defensive organisation held firm, and the final whistle confirmed a famous victory for El Glorioso.

For Barcelona, the defeat represents little more than a statistical footnote in an otherwise dominant campaign. With 91 points accumulated across the 2025/26 season, Flick’s side had long since wrapped up the title. The only consequence of the loss is that reaching the 100-point mark is now mathematically out of reach.

The implications for Alavés are considerably more profound. The victory lifted them from the relegation zone into 15th place in the LaLiga standings on 40 points. With two matches remaining in the season, Sánchez Flores’s side have moved into a position where their top-flight status is now within their own hands — a dramatically different outlook compared to where they stood before kick-off.

The result continues a broader narrative around Barcelona’s squad depth and rotation management. While Flick’s willingness to rest key players ahead of potential end-of-season commitments is understandable, the defeat underlines the fine margins that persist in the relegation battle, where every available point carries enormous weight for the clubs at the bottom of the table.