A fine goal from academy product Fermin Lopez saw Barcelona beat Shakhtar Donetsk 2-1 to stay perfect with three wins from three in the UEFA Champions League.
A youthful Barca team dealt with their Ukrainian opponents well, with Ferran Torres opening the scoring in the first half after a lengthy VAR check.
Lopez’s stunner doubled the lead as Barca cemented top spot In Group H on nine points despite a fine goal for Shakhtar in the second-half from Georgiy Sudakov and a late push from the away team.
As Barcelona applied pressure in the first half, Ilkay Gundogan lifted a pinpoints cross over the Shakhtar backline for Lopez, who took the ball down on his chest and rattled the post from close range in a swift move before Torres followed up the rebound with a powerful finish, which was quickly ruled offside.
Following a VAR check, Barcelona were given the green light for an onside decision and were rewarded with the lead on the half-hour mark.
Things got even better for the Spanish champions when Lopez struck superbly to double their advantage before the break.
Following his opener, Torres turned provider to slip the ball to an overlapping Lopez through the middle of the pitch. The 20-year-old took a clever touch to shift onto his right and take the ball away from Irakli Azarovi before his effort nicked the inside of the right post and rippled the net.
Shakhtar got a goal back through Georgiy Sudakov following a flowing counter-attacking move with just under 30 minutes to play, but the Spanish outfit were able to hang on for the win.
The one setback for Barcelona was the withdrawal of Joao Felix, who moved around the pitch gingerly towards the end of the match and could be another injury concern ahead of the weekend’s Clasico.
