Raphinha maintained his impressive start to the new season as Barcelona secured their second consecutive La Liga victory with a 2-0 win over Athletic Club at Spotify Camp Nou.

The Brazilian winger opened the scoring with a superb individual effort, taking his tally to three goals this campaign. He showed great composure to round Athletic goalkeeper Unai Simón before finding the back of the net. Fermin López later sealed the victory with eight minutes remaining.

Rodri also made his Barcelona debut following his £65 million transfer from Manchester City, coming on as a second-half substitute.

Barcelona dominated proceedings from the opening stages as they looked to build on their opening-day victory over Elche. Hansi Flick’s men created several early opportunities, with both Lamine Yamal and Raphinha coming close to breaking the deadlock.

Raphinha, who had already struck the post, eventually put Barcelona ahead in the 37th minute. The former Leeds United winger raced beyond goalkeeper Simón before finishing after receiving a through ball from Pedri.

Athletic Club struggled to create clear chances, although Nico Williams came close before the break when his effort from just outside the penalty area went wide.

Barcelona continued to threaten after the restart, with Anthony Gordon firing over the crossbar from inside the box. López also came close to adding a second, but his effort was brilliantly saved by Simón.

Just after the hour mark, Rodri was introduced for Raphinha to make his first appearance for Barcelona since completing his move from Manchester City.

The Catalan giants eventually secured all three points when López took advantage of a defensive error from Athletic Club to score from close range.

The result gave Flick’s side a winning start at home and ensured Barcelona remained perfect after two league matches.