Barcelona won 7-0 against Levante Las Planas in Liga F on Wednesday evening.
The result on its own is fairly unremarkable given Barça’s utter dominance of Spanish football in recent seasons – bear in mind this is a side that racked up a cumulative goal difference of +300 across the 2020/21 and 2021/22 campaigns.
But this game was special because of what it represented in a wider context.
It wasn’t just any win, it was a 50th consecutive league win.
Not since June 2021 when Atletico Madrid, themselves three-time back-to-back Spanish champions in the not too distant past, edged a seven-goal thriller have Barcelona taken any less than three points from a domestic league game.
Even for a side as dominant as they, it is a truly spectacular feat.
After losing to Atletico, Barça went on to win their final five league games of the 2020/21 season. The 2021/22 campaign then saw 30 straight victories, a flawless season with a maximum 90 points. Another 15 wins on the bounce to begin 2022/23 makes 50 in a row in Liga F.
It is worth noting that this season’s efforts have been without back-to-back Ballon d’Or winner Alexia Putellas as a result of her ACL layoff, while top striker Jenni Hermoro left the club last summer.
Yet Barça have remained as strong as ever in domestic circles. The goals that delivered the 50th consecutive league win came from usual sources, with Asisat Oshoala scoring a hat-trick and Ana-Maria Crnogorcevic and Mariona Caldentey chipping in. There was also one from 16-year-old talent Vicky Lopez, who has played only a handful of first-team games.
Coach Jonatan Giraldez was also able to rest star names like Aitana Bonmati and Lucy Bronze from the start, while there was also no Keira Walsh, the world’s most expensive female player.
Although another Liga F title already looks to be in the bag, but Barcelona’s hopes of a fourth consecutive domestic double hang in the balance following their expulsion from this season’s Copa de la Reina for fielding an ineligible player – Geyse played against Osasuna in the last 16 when she should have been serving a suspension. And while an appeal is lodged, reversing it seems unlikely.
