Barcelona beat Rayo 5-2 at Camp Nou as transfer talk around Julián Álvarez rumbles on

Barcelona defeated Rayo Vallecano 5-2 at the Camp Nou on Monday night, 24 hours before the transfer deadline, with Raphinha and Lamine Yamal each scoring twice and Anthony Gordon influential in attack.

The win arrived amid continued speculation over Barcelona’s pursuit of Atlético Madrid striker Julián Álvarez. Manager Hansi Flick welcomed Gabriel Jesus — an £8.6m arrival from Arsenal — in the stands and said: “He’s a top striker,” but club president Joan Laporta has publicly stated Barcelona’s interest in Álvarez, saying: “This whole situation has created a lot of noise.”

Raphinha’s two neat finishes and Yamal’s pair of goals propelled Barcelona after an early reply from Rayo’s Sergio Camello. The 19-year-old Yamal cut inside and beat Dani Cárdenas at the near post to put Barcelona ahead and later scored again from the edge of the box to extend the lead.

Raphinha’s first came after Rayo centre-back Pathé Ciss was beaten and slipped, allowing the Brazil forward to slot in an equaliser. Six minutes after the restart, Rayo defender Florian Lejeune turned a cross into his own net; Anthony Gordon supplied the cross and later produced a backheel that set up Raphinha’s second and what the report described as Gordon’s third assist in three games.

Flick addressed concerns over Yamal’s form and fitness, noting the teenager had only three weeks’ holiday since the World Cup and saying the player was reaching his “top level” in training. Barcelona’s midfield changes included Rodri appearing from the bench; the article notes Rodri had recently joined from Manchester City and made his Barcelona debut in last Thursday’s win over Athletic.

Off the pitch, Laporta publicly renewed Barcelona’s interest in Álvarez, adding: “We are very interested in buying Julián Álvarez. We would like our offer to be accepted.” Atlético responded with a statement critical of Barcelona’s conduct, saying: “This situation isn’t about money, it’s about dignity,” and later asserting “there is zero consideration of an Álvarez transfer to Barcelona.” The report also states Álvarez received a hostile reception at the Metropolitano when he came on as a substitute against Villarreal, missed some training sessions and was absent for Atlético’s 3-1 win at Sevilla after being described by the club as unwell; he returned to training on Sunday.

The wider weekend in La Liga included Real Madrid’s 4-0 victory over Málaga, with Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappé on the scoresheet and Trent Alexander-Arnold credited with creating Madrid’s third for Mbappé. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored for Deportivo in their 3-1 win over Valencia, his third goal in as many games, and told reporters: “I’ve told him: ‘We are waiting for you.’” The report also highlights a defensive error by Elche goalkeeper Matías Dituro that led to Racing Santander’s Yassir Zabiri scoring the first of a hat-trick in Racing’s first top-flight win since 2012; Racing coach José Alberto said: “Matías is a very daring goalkeeper. We had spoken to Yassir: I thought he could win the ball off him – and look how it turned out.”

Barcelona and Real Madrid remain the only teams with 100% records after three league games, and the story says attention will be focused on transfer deadline day, in particular any potential moves involving Álvarez at Atlético’s training ground.