Lamine Yamal rescues a draw for Barça in Bruges (3-3)

FC Barcelona drew on their visit to Bruges on the fourth matchday of the league stage of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League. The Blaugrana team was never ahead at the Jan Breydel stadium, but they rescued a point thanks to the magic of Lamine Yamal. The '10' had a memorable second half, scoring a spectacular goal and forcing the own goal that led to the final draw.

Hansi Flick repeated his lineup from the league match against Elche. Pau Cubarsí was expected to return to the starting XI, but the coaching staff preferred to leave him on the bench, as the '5' had reported physical fatigue in recent weeks. Compared to the duel against Olympiacos, the main novelties were the returns of Robert Lewandowski and Dani Olmo, both substitutes.

After a fairly even first half in which Bruges did a lot of damage on the counter, going into halftime with a 2-1 lead, Barça managed to equalize the match in the second half after trailing three times. In the end, Flick's men salvaged a draw that proved valuable given how the match unfolded.

Frenetic start to the match: three goals in 17 minutes

Bruges started the match defensively with a very compact 4-2-3-1 block, attentive to quick breaks to find Tzolis and Forbs on the wings. The '8' took the first shot on goal before the minute 2 mark, with a low shot easily controlled by Szczesny. 

Brujas opened the scoring in the 6th minute with a through ball. Carlos Forbs, assisted by Jules Koundé, broke the offside trap, bursting down the right flank. The '9' played a pass into the middle, where Nicolò Tresoldi appeared unmarked to finish past Szczesny.Barça's reaction was immediate. Lamine Yamal threaded a ball to the right, where Fermín López broke through the Belgian defense's press to send in a cross that found Ferran Torres alone against Jackers. "El Tiburón" finished with one touch, sealing the 1-1 draw when the 8th minute had barely passed.For the blaugrana squad, it's 51 consecutive games scoring, an absolute club record. From the draw onwards, Flick's men took control of the match. Rashford and Lamine found space on the flanks, while Fermín's mobility hurt the Bruges defense. The '16', in fact, hit the post in the 11th minute with a left-footed blast.

Carlos Forbs made it 2-1 for Bruges

However, the locals regained the lead again in the 17th minute. A corner in Barça's favor led to a lethal counter-attack by the Belgians, with **Tzolis** receiving from **Vanaken** to break the offside trap. The '7' passed to **Forbs**, who, taking advantage of Szczesny's misjudgment in coming out, advanced towards the area, finishing with a placed left-footed shot past the Pole.

Barça deserved a draw before halftime

Barça again came close to equalizing in the 26th minute, with **a Koundé right-footed shot that hit the crossbar**. After the half-hour mark, Bruges retreated further and further towards their goal, conditioned by a Barcelona that caused damage with quick ball circulation, although the final touch needed to be sharpened to achieve the equalizer.

On the verge of halftime, Ferran came very close to a brace, taking advantage of a brilliant pass from Lamine into space. The '7' finished against the desperate sortie of the goalkeeper Jackers, but his cross shot with his right foot went just wide of the post. Despite Barça's dominance in the final quarter of an hour of the first half, the 2-1 scoreline held until the break

'Messianic' Goal by Lamine Yamal in Belgium

Lamine Yamal celebrating his goal against Bruges

At halftime, neither coach made any changes. Brugge threatened with a shot from Seys repelled by Szczesny in the 49th minute, while Barça responded with another shot from Fermín from the flank that nearly surprised Jackers. Possession was Barça's, but every Belgian counter was a headache.

Lamine, in the 51st minute, was blocked by two opponents when he tried to shoot a rebound that was somewhat awkward for him. Ferran, with a backheel, almost created a magical assist for Koundé, but the opposing goalkeeper came out quickly to prevent the Barça defender from controlling the ball.

Before the 60th minute was up, Flick sent Lewandowski and Olmo onto the field for Ferran and Casadó. Just after the double substitution, Eric García surprised with a missile from three-quarters of the field that crashed against the crossbar. 

Right after, Lamine Yamal's magic appeared in all its splendor. The '10' invented a 'Messi-like' play, accelerating to dribble past two rivals and enter the box. Fermín backheeled it and the player from Mataró continued his run, finishing with one touch as Jackers came out.

In 60 minutes, the match was tied 2-2 with a spectacular goal from Lamine that was reminiscent of the one Leo Messi scored against Real Madrid in the 10/11 Champions League semi-finals.

...But Barcelona's defense continued to falter in Belgium

The joy of the draw, however, lasted very little. **Carlos Forbs**, who a couple of minutes earlier shot high a point-blank pass, scored his brace in the 64th minute, this time assisted by Vanaken. **Eric was caught out** and the '9' went one-on-one against Szczesny, finishing with a subtle touchJust as the *azulgrana* defense suffered with every counter, **the Belgians were suffering from a Lamine Yamal unleashed down their flank**. In the 68th minute, the winger almost scored another screamer with a shot from the side that demanded a spectacular stretch from Jackers

Two minutes later, on another very dangerous counterattack by Bruges, head referee Anthony Taylor awarded a penalty for Alejandro Balde on Forbs. The broadcast images, however, showed that the '9' tripped over the defender's leg. After a VAR review, the English referee reversed his decision.

Lamine caused an own goal to seal the 3-3

Barça, once the scare of the penalty was over, turned its attack towards the right flank. With Lamine on fire, the bet was logical and the '10', in the 77th minute, orchestrated the Barça equalizer with a poisoned cross. The Rocafonda native was looking for Lewandowski's head and Christos Tzolis, in his eagerness to clear, headed the ball directly into his own goal.

The own goal was a bucket of ice water for the home team. Nicky Hayen moved the bench, taking off his goal scorers Forbs and Tresoldi, to bring on Vermant and Diakhon. Flick, for his part, sent Roony Bardghji onto the field in the 82nd minute, in place of Rashford. The Englishman, although involved, was somewhat subdued.

The Swede gave a good pass to Olmo in the 87th minute, which ended with a very high shot from Olmo. Towards the end, Eric had to leave due to a minor nosebleed, while Bruges seemed content with the draw. In stoppage time, **Romeo Vermant scored Bruges' fourth, with a foul on Szczesny** flagged by VAR.

Anthony Taylor had validated the goal, but changed his decision after reviewing the play on the monitor. After 8 minutes of added time, the match ended in a draw. Given how the final minutes unfolded, the result could have been worse for a Barça that will have to readjust many defensive details. Before visiting Chelsea, the Catalans occupy 11th place in the standings, with 10 points.

Match Report: Club Brugge 3-3 FC Barcelona

• Club Brugge, 3: Jackers; Sabbe, Ordoñez, Mechele, Seys; Stankovic, Onyedika (Audoor, 84th min.); Vanaken, Forbs (Diakhon, 77th min.), Tzolis; Tresoldi (Vermant, 77th min.).
• FC Barcelona, 3: Szczesny; Koundé, Araujo, Eric García (Cubarsí, 90+3rd min.), Balde (Gerard Martín, 90+3rd min.); Casadó (Olmo, 58th min.), Frenkie de Jong; Fermín, Lamine Yamal, Rashford (Roony, 82nd min.); Ferran Torres (Lewandowski, 58th min.).
• Goals: 1-0, Nicolò Tresoldi (6th min.); 1-1, Ferran Torres (8th min.); 2-1, Carlos Forbs (17th min.); 2-2, Lamine Yamal (60th min.); 3-2, Carlos Forbs (64th min.); 3-3, Christos Tzolis (77th min., own goal).
• Referee: Anthony Taylor (England). Booked Raphael Onyedika and Mamadou Diakhon for Brugge. For Barça, cautioned Jules Koundé, Lamine Yamal, and Fermín López. In the 70th minute, he awarded a non-existent penalty for a foul by Alejandro Balde on Carlos Forbs, which was corrected by VAR. He disallowed a goal by Romeo Vermant for a prior foul on Szczesny, also signaled by VAR.
• Stadium: Jan Breydel Stadium, Bruges, Belgium.
• Incidents: Match corresponding to matchday 4 of the league phase of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League.