Skip to main content

Barcelona Held By Rayo Vallecano As Robert Lewandowski Is Frustrated On La Liga Debut

Barcelona 0-0 Rayo Vallecano

Robert Lewandowski was one of four Barcelona summer signings to make their debuts on Saturday but they failed to inspire their new team to three points.

Lewandowski played the full 90 minutes of Barca's La Liga season-opener against Rayo Vallecano.

Andreas Christensen and Raphinha both featured for an hour before Franck Kessie came on for the final 20 minutes.

All four newbies had only been registered on Friday after Barcelona did some last-minute fundraising in order to comply with La Liga's financial regulations.

Rayo Vallecano goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski pictured making a save against Robert Lewandowski on the striker's Barcelona debut in August 2022

Rayo Vallecano goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski pictured making a save against Robert Lewandowski on the striker's Barcelona debut

Lewandowski and Kessie both put the ball in the net on Saturday but they were denied debut goals by the offside flag as Barca were held to a 0-0 draw.

Rayo also had a goal disallowed at the Camp Nou, where Barca ended the game with 10 men following a red card shown to Sergio Busquets in added time.

Barca were dominant for most of the night. They had 68% of possession, registered 21 shots to Rayo's four and had all eight of the game's corner kicks.

Lewandowski had the best chance of the match in the second half when he spun his marker before firing just wide.

This was the first time in eight years that Lewandowski had failed to score on his first appearance of a new season.