Barcelona puts Real Madrid psychological pressure by 7 points

Leader Barcelona expanded the gap over its pursuers and rival Real Madrid to seven points temporarily, after defeating its guest Rayo Vallecano 1-0 on Sunday in the 29th stage of the Spanish Football League.
With the goal of Uruguayan Ronald Araujo, the Catalan team raised its score to 73 points before the expected confrontation between Real Madrid and its neighbor Atletico at the end of the stage, and before Barcelona itself meets Atletico, fourth in the standings, in the next stage.
Barcelona entered the match ecstatic by sweeping Newcastle United of England 7-2 in the second leg of the Champions League final, and continued its series of matches without loss, which reached eight in various competitions (7 wins and a draw).
Goalkeeper Joan Garcia started after he left in the 82nd minute of the last match against Newcastle due to a minor injury, while defender Eric Garcia, who also left in the 22nd minute of the last match, sat on the bench.
As he did in the last match, Eric’s replacement, Araujo, who carried the captain’s armband, presented himself by scoring the only goal against Rayo Vallecano with a header from a corner kick executed by Portuguese Joao Cancelo (24).
The match witnessed many scoring opportunities for both sides, but the host team emerged with a clean sheet for the first time after three matches in various competitions thanks to the brilliance of Garcia, who won the award for best player in the match.
This is Rayo Vallecano’s first loss in the league since January 2, after a series of six matches in which it achieved two wins and four draws, leaving its score at 32 points in 14th place after celebrating reaching the quarter-finals of the Conference League in midweek.