In another twist in the La Liga title race, Raphinha’s hat-trick once again extended Barcelona’s advantage at the top with 10 games to go in the Spanish top-flight.
The Catalonia-based side are in red-hot form in front of goal, with four of their forwards in double digits in terms of goals in La Liga.
The La Liga title race is another one between Barcelona and Real Madrid, but Barca matched Los Blancos as both teams got big victories.
Barcelona were able to down Sevilla 5-2 and Real Madrid picked up a 4-1 win over Elche; however, it was Barca captain Raphinha’s hat-trick that snatched the headlines in La Liga over the weekend.
With the Brazilian an ever-important part of Barca’s front line, can he and his fellow forwards lead Barca to back-to-back Spanish top-flight titles?
Raphinha’s Hat-Trick: Barca’s La Liga Title Race Charge Continues
Ageing and maturing, Raphinha continues to push his high standards as the Barca captain nets another hat-trick, and in a game of high importance.
As is always the case in terms of the La Liga title race, when one team wins, it means the other team has to match the result to not fall away by too many points.
For example, in the Premier League title, Arsenal have opened up a nice cushion of nine points, and that is due to Manchester City’s inability to match the Gunners’ results over the weekend, as one side won and the other drew.
Going back to the Raphinha hat-trick, it is only his third ever Barcelona hat-trick, and only his second in La Liga.
The fifth-best player in the 2025 Balon d’Or, Raphinha, has hit double figures for the second consecutive season in the league, but his goalscoring exploits for both Barcelona and Leeds United have seen him hit at least 10 goals in each of his last five seasons.
Raphinha’s hat-trick in the recent 5-2 win over Sevilla just shows that even when he has been injured, he has been able to bounce back and supply Barca with the much-needed goals.
Goals Shared Across The Barca Frontline
Raphinha’s hat-trick will definitely show the importance of the Barcelona captain; however, Hansi Flick has a whole catalogue of forwards to pick from.
The likes of veteran forward Robert Lewandowski, starboy Lamine Yamal and the ever-present Ferran Torres have all hit over 10 league goals this season as Barca look to hit 100 goals in La Liga this season.
The Barcelona manager, who looks to end his second year with even more silverware added to his trophy collection, has assembled one hell of a squad with the frontline firing on all cylinders.
Even the likes of Dani Olmo, Fermin Lopez and Marcus Rashford have greatly contributed to the tally of 77 goals that Barca have scored so far this season.
With such a glittering front line, Flick has the opportunity of achieving back-to-back La Liga titles for Barcelona, something that was last achieved seven seasons ago.
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The Inevitable Challenge From Real Madrid
Regardless of a free-scoring Barcelona side and Raphinha’s hat-trick, the challenge from rivals Real Madrid will always be there.
The unstoppable force that is Kylian Mbappe, even when he has picked up an injury, is leading the goalscoring charts in La Liga and has also single-handedly almost scored half of Real Madrid’s goals in the league.
With 23 goals for the Frenchman, he has kept Los Blancos in the hunt for the La Liga title, something that alluded them last season by four points, the same points deficit that they currently find themselves in.
Alvaro Arbeloa’s side are going through somewhat of an injury crisis with a number of first-team players out with injury.
The French goalscoring machine is still recovering from his latest injury setback, but is certainly a key player who could overturn Real Madrid’s points deficit and bring back Los Blancos to the top of La Liga once again.
A Chance To Progress In The UEFA Champions League
Barcelona have been drawn on the more favourable side in the UEFA Champions League knockout stages as they aim to fight for their first European title since 2014/15.
However, Barca’s task of reaching the quarter-finals won’t be easy, as they were held to a 1-1 draw against Newcastle United at St James’ Park in the first leg of their Round of 16 clash.
The front line had very little to work with in that clash, and it was only through a stoppage-time penalty from Lamine Yamal that Barca salvaged a draw.
However, with the second leg being played in front of their home crowd at the Camp Nou, the Barca fans will be hoping for another memorable UEFA Champions League night.
With the winner of Atletico Madrid vs Tottenham Hotspur awaiting them in the quarter-finals, Raphinha’s hat-trick has come at a good time as the Barca skipper looks to hit form just at the right time.
Main Photo
Credit: IMAGO / AFLOSPORT
Recording Date: 15.03.2026
