Staff Reporter.
Ferran Torres scored twice as Barcelona continued their impressive run of form by beating Osasuna for a fourth La Liga win in a row.
Former Manchester City striker Torres opened the scoring early on from the penalty spot after Gavi was fouled.
He got his second soon after with a clinical finish following a great through ball by Ousmane Dembele.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang stabbed in from another Dembele assist before substitute Riqui Puig added a fourth.
The 22-year-old showed great composure after his initial shot had been parried, taking the ball round the goalkeeper and cutting inside two defenders before curling in.
Aubameyang’s goal, meanwhile, was his fifth in six La Liga games since joining from Arsenal, making him the second-fastest Barcelona player to reach five goals in the competition in the 21st century, after Samuel Eto’o in 2004 and Zlatan Ibrahimovic in 2009.
The win moved Barcelona up to third on 51 points, although they remain way off the pace in the title battle with leaders Real Madrid on 63 points.
“I’m really happy that we won and are rising,” Torres told reporters afterward. “Our objective is to keep climbing in the standings and keep improving game by game.”
At this point, the new-look Barcelona attack was really purring and, after such a bleak start to the season, the Camp Nou crowd was fully enjoying what they were watching.
After their return match against Galatasaray in midweek, Barcelona will visit the Bernabeu for a meeting with Clasico rivals and LaLiga leaders Real Madrid next Sunday.