Barcelona, ??with the outstanding performance of their goalkeeper, Joan Garcia, who saved his team with his saves, earned a point in Vallecas (1-1) against Rayo, who knew how to recover from the initial goal of Lamine Yamal equalised in the second half through Fran Perez and relegated the Blaugranas to fourth place in the general table, which Real Madrid leads with a perfect record.

The Blaugranas, aware of their opponent's high pressure, came onto the pitch with a higher gear than Rayo, who were close to conceding the first goal in the sixth minute when Raphinha shot went wide.

The Madrid team was quick to return the clear chance. It was just six minutes later when Romanian Andrei Ratiu tested Joan Garcia with a point-blank shot, who successfully converted the opportunity.

Ferran Torres started as Hansi Flick's choice for his attack despite Robert Lewandowski being available. He tried to find space in Rayo's defence, who watched him closely to prevent him from getting any action, such as the pass Raphinha gave him, which he failed to finish inside the area as he went to ground with everything in his favor.

Barcelona's push was rewarded in the 39th minute when Lamine Yamal opened the scoring with a penalty after being brought down inside the area by Pep Chavarria in a move that the VAR was unable to review as it had not been working properly during the first half.

The goal left Rayo reeling and those minutes of confusion could have cost them dearly, as in added time of the first half Dani Olmo launched a volley in a dead ball that went over the bar.

The break was good for the Madrid team, who refreshed their ideas and, right at the start of the second half, showed their daring with a very clear chance from Isi Palazon that Joan Garcia thwarted with a providential save.

Barcelona, ??better at tactical, combinative play, made Rayo suffer with the ball at the feet of Pedri, Lamine Yamal and Raphinha,But the Madrid team also knew how to hurt the Barca team. They realized their fragility from set pieces and, in the 66th minute, Isi Palazon sent a corner to the far post that Fran Perez, completely alone, volleyed home.

Contrary to what happened in the first half, the goal gave Rayo wings and sowed doubts for Barcelona, ??who couldn't find the breath of fresh air they needed in Marcus Rashford and Lewandowski. Both were left unattended and had little involvement, partly due to the good work of the Rayo center backs.

The one who became a 'giant' to save his team was Joan Garcia, who made two very valuable saves from shots by Fran Perez and Jorge de Frutos in separate counterattacks. These were Barcelona's minutes of greatest suffering, as they ended the match resigned and unable to find a way to unravel Rayo's defensive structure, designed by Inigo Perez.

In this way, FC Barcelona dropped its first points of the season and, although it remains undefeated after three matches and has 7 points, it was relegated to fourth place in the general table, which is currently led by Real Madrid, with a perfect record and 9 points, the same as Athletic, who are below on goal difference; the podium is completed by Villarreal, who have 7, the same as the Catalans.