Real Betis vs Barcelona: Barca win 5-2 in Seville to equal LaLiga's best-ever start with nine straight wins

Barcelona beat Real Betis 5-2 in Seville on Saturday, a ninth win from nine LaLiga games that equals the best start in the league's history, ESPN reported. For anyone searching "Real Betis vs Barcelona" this morning, the short version: Lamine Yamal, Rodri, Gabriel Jesus, Eric Garcia and Dani Olmo scored for Barca; Valentin Gomez and Abde Ezzalzouli scored for Betis.

How the goals came

• 10th minute: Yamal, 19, opened the scoring with a solo run.
• Before the half hour: Valentin Gomez levelled for Betis.
• 41st minute: Rodri put Barcelona back in front with his first goal for the club.
• A Giovani Lo Celso goal for Betis was ruled out for a handball by Cucho Hernandez in the build-up.
• Early second half: Gabriel Jesus made it 3-1, and Abde Ezzalzouli pulled one back almost at once.
• Straight after that goal, Betis's Facundo Bernal was sent off for a head-butt on Yamal.
• With an extra player for the last half hour, Eric Garcia and Dani Olmo finished it 5-2.

The record

Nine straight wins to open a LaLiga season matches Real Madrid's record, set in 1961-62 and equalled in 1968-69. Barcelona have scored 39 league goals, 20 more than any other side, and have won 11 in a row in all competitions. Yamal has nine goals and nine assists in 11 games this season.

Coach Hansi Flick called Yamal "at the moment, the best player in the world" after the match, but said the club was "fighting for this, not for records".

What comes next, in Pakistan time

Barcelona play two of their hardest games of the season inside a week:

1. Paris Saint-Germain vs Barcelona, Champions League, away in Paris on Tuesday 20 October.
2. Barcelona vs Real Madrid, El Clasico, at Spotify Camp Nou next weekend. A win there would give Barca the best LaLiga start on record outright.

European evening kick-offs usually fall at midnight PKT or later, so check the exact time on the day. Raphinha returned from his hamstring injury for 20 minutes off the bench and should be available for both games, while Garcia, Gerard Martin and Jules Kounde all took knocks and were due for tests on Sunday, according to ESPN.

Elsewhere in Europe on Saturday

Bayern Munich beat RB Leipzig 6-1 to go top of the Bundesliga, and Manchester City made it seven wins from seven in the Premier League. Follow every result on our sports desk, and if you are staying up for the Clasico on a mobile data bundle, our mobile load tax calculator shows what a top-up really costs after tax.