Izuchukwu OkosiBarcelona on Saturday night made little work of their clash against Real Betis as they comfortably beat the visitors to continue their impressive start to the 2023/2024 La Liga season.
Joao Felix who is on loan from fellow La Liga title rivals, Atletico Madrid, scored a goal and was awarded the Man-of-Match award in the game.
Felix fired Barcelona ahead, with further goals from Robert Lewandowski, Ferran Torres and Raphinha sinking the visitors, before Cancelo capped off a brilliant evening with a piece of individual effort.
Barcelona’s emphatic victory places them provisionally top of the table, a point clear of rivals Real Madrid who host Real Sociedad on Sunday.
Barcelona played with a vibrancy they lacked at times last season, even as they lifted La Liga, warming up for their Champions League opener on Tuesday against Royal Antwerp.
Felix is expected to be in action on Tuesday.
Felix was at the core of it with an impressive display after Xavi handed him and compatriot Cancelo their first starts for the club following loan moves on deadline day and both quickly impressed the home fans.
“I’m very happy to be starting again, the feelings are very good — it’s easy to play in this team,” Felix told Movistar.
“When you have a good structure and circulate the ball rapidly, spaces appear and so do goals.”
Felix, signed by Atletico Madrid for a club record fee of 126 million euros ($134 million) in 2019, failed to find consistent form in the capital and was loaned to Chelsea last season.
“I am happy, the change has done me good, me and my family, I am very happy here,” he added.
Betis, lining up with a back four composed only of former Barcelona players, played with attacking intent, unlike many other teams who will visit the temporary Olympic Stadium home of the Spanish champions.
Izuchukwu Okosi is a Nigerian sports and entertainment journalist with two decades of experience in the media industry having begun his media journey in 2002 as an intern at Mundial Sports International (MSI) and Africa Independent Television (AIT), owners of Daar Communications Plc.
In October 2004, Okosi joined Complete Communications Limited, publishers of Complete Sports newspaper and Complete Football magazine as a reporter and later script writer for the Complete Sports studio.
He worked there for 13 years until October 2017.
Okosi also worked various times as Correspondent, Content creator and Editor at Sports Market International Magazine, Opera News, All Nigeria Soccer Media and Iconic Media Watch.
He also undertook freelance writing gigs for some local and international organizations.
Okosi is a member of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Association of Movie Producers (AMP), Association of Voiceover Artistes of Nigeria (AVOA), Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) and Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).
He has been part of cast in some Nollywood movies and radio dramas including Blood Money 2, Scores To Settle, Dead End 2, Another Campus Tale and Battle Line.
Aside mainstream media and the entertainment industry, he has interests in scouting/unearthing of talents in the sports and creative sectors, exports business and property development.
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