Lewandowski passes century as champions Barca sign off in style
The veteran Polish forward, 36, reached 27 league goals for the season, although he finished behind Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe on 31.
Barcelona wrapped up a domestic treble with Copa del Rey and Spanish Super Cups wins, while fourth-place Athletic also had a fine season and returned to the Champions League for the first time in 11 years.
Athletic defender Oscar de Marcos made his 570th and final appearance for the club, behind only Jose Angel Iribar, a goalkeeper who played 614 times in the 1960s and 70s, in the club's history.
Even Iribar might not have saved Lewandowski's opener after the striker was fed by Fermin Lopez, brilliantly scooping over current Bilbao goalkeeper Unai Simon to put Barca ahead and rack up the Catalans' 100th league goal of the season.
It also brought up a century of goals for Lewandowski in a Barcelona shirt since joining in 2022 from Bayern Munich, and another was soon to follow.
Three minutes later Lewandowski nodded in at the back post after a corner was flicked into his path.
"I am very happy, very proud to be part of this team, this club, it's been something amazing," Lewandowski told Barca One.
"I try to do my best, not only with goals but my attitude on and off the pitch -- and there are so many young players we have to take care of them.
"We did something great (this season) but we know we can still do a lot (more) things."
Lewandowski missed two good chances in the second half as Barca tried to stretch their lead and sign off in style.
In the Barcelona goal, Inaki Pena showed sharp reactions to tip a ball against the bar as a Pau Cubarsi deflection headed towards his own goal.
Barcelona's 17-year-old star Lamine Yamal forced a smart save at his near post from Simon.
The Catalans got their third when Dani Olmo won and then converted a penalty in stoppage time.
After the game De Marcos gave a speech to fans at the San Mames and was thrown into the air by his team-mates.
"I just want to thank everyone who has been there on (my) path," said the 36-year-old defender, who played 16 seasons at the club.
"Next season I will be in the stands, as just another Athletic fan.
"And I am sure that someone who is watching today, will be here on the pitch, representing us as Athletic."
Sorloth super-sub
Earlier Alexander Sorloth showed once again why he is such a dangerous option off the bench for Atletico Madrid as he came on to score a hat-trick in under half-an-hour in a 4-0 win at Girona.
Diego Simeone's side continued their Club World Cup preparations in a dead rubber league match at Montilivi, with Atletico locked into third place and Girona safe from relegation.
Introduced in the 62nd minute for Antoine Griezmann, Sorloth broke the deadlock after 68 minutes.
Clement Lenglet extended Atletico's lead before Sorloth struck two more late on to reach 20 La Liga goals, 12 of those as a substitute.
Sorloth hit four goals earlier this month against Real Sociedad, with the first three of those scored by the 11th minute, making it the earliest hat-trick in La Liga history.
"La Liga is over but not the season," said Simeone, looking ahead.
"We will rest now and from June 2 get back to training to focus on the Club World Cup."
© 2025 AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
France 24
an hour ago
- France 24
Como block Inter move for Fabregas
Inzaghi left on Tuesday following Inter's humiliating 5-0 thrashing by Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final. Reports subsequently linked Inter with a move for the former Spain international Fabregas. "We communicated our refusal directly to the president of Inter, who accepted it with the courtesy and clarity expected between clubs who hold a mutual respect," Como said in a statement. "For this reason, we are treating the persistent rumours of their interest in our coach as pure fantasy." Fabregas, 38, who had a glittering club career with Arsenal, Barcelona and Chelsea, took over last July as coach of Como, the club where he ended his playing career in 2023. Under his guidance, the promoted side finished tenth in Serie A, often praised for their attractive play. Following the announcement of the departure of Inzaghi, who officially joined Saudi club Al-Hilal on Thursday, Inter had made Fabregas their priority. According to the Italian press, they have now turned their attention to Cristian Chivu, a former Inter player, who is currently in charge of Parma.
LeMonde
3 hours ago
- LeMonde
Has the PSG fan become unbearable in the office?
At the office, the Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) fan has long served as a way to blow off steam: He or she was the colleague you would drop in on with a wry smile after a miserable weekend when their favorite team had suffered yet another defeat. A poor soul at whom colleagues would lob fake-sympathetic jokes ("You won't be spending your holidays with Sergi Roberto!" – a reference to the FC Barcelona player who crushed PSG in 2017). With morale at rock bottom, this aficionado reliably pointed to the magnetic pole of defeat, somewhere near the Parc des Princes, the team's stadium. Alone in their corner of the open space, decorated with a poster of PSG legend Rai, this diehard fan sometimes managed to develop a true managerial philosophy of transcendence through failure, repeating over and over, "What doesn't kill me makes me stronger." Everyone else would quietly stifle their laughter. But that was before. Before Saturday, May 31, 2025, when, after a legendary 5-0 win, PSG snatched the Champions League title from under Inter Milan's nose. That colleague, who had endured years of humiliation while gritting their teeth, naturally showed up on Monday after the feat, their jersey draped over their shoulders, head held high, striding through the halls with body language broadcasting a clear message: "I told you so!" This is not someone merely celebrating a sporting achievement, but a true believer who has just witnessed a biblical resurrection. Carried by faith, they believed without evidence long before anyone else. In their scenario, coach Luis Enrique stands in as a sort of Jesus Christ who managed to transform a soulless team into a winning machine – as if turning water into wine. Post-victory depression On X, Fabien S. summed up the vengeful spirit of this office ultra: "Flag, jersey and scarf in the bag. I'm going to get a crazy amount of pleasure from saying: 'Good morning, how are you? Did you have a good weekend?' Every Marseille supporter at the office gets a message on Teams this morning." In truth, seeing your dream come true is never easy. Sometimes, it's even the worst thing that can happen to a dream. The famous line from journalist Thierry Roland after France's World Cup win in 1998 ("I think after this, we can die happy") led football fans down the wrong path.
Euronews
4 hours ago
- Euronews
Champions League: These are all the records broken by PSG
PSG's Champions League triumph wrapped an incredible football season in Europe. Luis Enrique's team crushed Inter 5-0 in the Munich final, winning an historic treble, and making it the biggest margin ever in a major international football showdown. It is worth noting, however, that Ajax beat AC Milan 6-0 in the last leg of the 1974 UEFA Super Cup, although the trophy is not widely regarded as a major one. PSG's win also marked a long-awaited milestone in the Champions League era. They now hold the record for the longest gap between a club's first Champions League appearance and their first title: 31 years, according to data analysed by The team also became the only one to have seven different goalscorers in a single Champions League match, following their 7-0 win over Brest on 19 February: Barcola, Kvaratskhelia, Vitinha, Doué, Mendes, Ramos and Mayulu. Inter's 5-0 thrashing however should not overshadow their extraordinary run to the final. True to the great Italian tradition of defending, the Nerazzurri set an incredible record by going 539 minutes without conceding a single goal from the start of the tournament, despite playing against top opponents such as Manchester City and Arsenal. The previous record was held by Manchester United, who kept opposition teams out for 481 minutes in the 2010-11 season when they got all the way to the final. Although Barcelona didn't make it to the final, many of their players broke individual records. Starting with Rafinha, the 28-year-old Brazilian matched Cristiano Ronaldo's 2014 record for the most goal involvements in a single Champions League season: 21 in total, thanks to an astonishing 13 goals and 8 assists. That wasn't the only individual record set by the Catalans. Described as one of the most difficult opponents to face by several players, Lamine Yamal became the youngest footballer to ever score in a Champions League semi-final, at just 17, against Inter. That smashes Kylian Mbappe's previous record, set at 18 years of age when he scored for Monaco in the 2016-17 campaign. There was some joy for Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, too. Thomas Müller extended his record for the most appearances for a single club in the Champions League era to 163, while Harry Kane became the first player to ever score a hat-trick of penalties, in September's game against Dinamo Zagreb. When it comes to appearances, Real Madrid bumped their record with 28 straight seasons in the competition, as well as extended their streak of reaching the knockouts 28 times in a row. Similarly, their former manager, Carlo Ancelotti, now at Brazil, extended his record for managerial appearances to 218 and further increased his record for Champions League victories by reaching 124. On the other hand, Girona and Feyenoord broke the record for the most own goals in a single Champions League season, with four each, breaking Fenerbahçe's previous record of three own goals in the 2007-08 season. At the same time, Feynoord's Austrian defender Gernot Trauner became the first player to ever score two own goals in a single UCL game, in a 6-1 loss to Lille in January.
