Barcelona put 5 past Elche yesterday in their opening match of the 2026/27 campaign in Alicante. The champions were rampant as Fermin Lopez grabbed a brace, Adeyemi grabbed a debut goal and Raphinha also helped himself to a brace and one assist as the Catalans shot directly to the top of the La Liga table in stunning fashion.
New signing Antony Gordon came off the bench and was also in brilliant form as he registered two assists on his official debut, showing the reason why Hansi Flick, Deco, and Joan Laporta chose to splurge on him.
Antony Gordon was brought in from Newcastle to help Barca bolster their attacking options and move away from much dependency on Lamine Yamal. Yesterday, albeit against a relatively small team, he proved Barcelona right in their decision to 70 million euros on him.
Barcelona were more present on the left-hand side of attack. In fact, 3 of their goals came from creativity and passing around the left-hand flank, and in a game where Lamine Yamal could not be as influential, Barcelona still broke the team down brilliantly, scored 5 goals, and controlled the game perfectly.
It is still early days in his Barcelona career, but it is now clear that Gordon was brought in to ease the pressure on Lamine Yamal having to be the creator in attack all the time.
Gordon’s speed advantage in counter-attacking was also evident yesterday against Elche as he sprinted away to create chances upon chances, and assisted Ferran Torres on one of such runs.
Gordon’s durability, effectiveness, and creativity will face better tests against bigger opponents and better structures in the Champions League, especially against teams that like to absorb pressure, sit back, and catch Barcelona’s highline.
His ability to contribute on the biggest stages like the Champions League will also be pivotal in justifying the transfer fee, because that is Barcelona’s biggest goal. They were winning the League before he joined, recapturing the Champions League is one of the key reasons why Barcelona chose to bring in players like Gordon, Rodri, and Cancelo.
Gordon reducing the attacking responsibility on Yamal is a welcomed development, but if he is to become even more pivotal for Barcelona, he will need to replicate the decisiveness he displayed yesterday against sides like Real Madrid, Atletico, and other Champions League heavyweights constantly.
