Lewandowski strikes twice as Barcelona beat Girona to take LaLiga lead

BARCELONA - Barcelona thumped visitors Girona 4-1 in the Catalan derby on March 30 after Robert Lewandowski netted twice in the second half to move Hansi Flicks side three points clear of Real Madrid at the top of LaLiga.

The victory moved Barcelona to 66 points from 29 games as 36-year-old Lewandowski -- who scored twice after the score was tied at 1-1 -- extended his tally at the top of LaLigas scoring chart to 25 goals, three clear of Real Madrids Kylian Mbappe.

I know a lot of people talk about my age, but I work as hard as I did when I was 21 and I want to play for more seasons, Lewandowski said with a smile.

At the moment Im feeling great physically and if you look at the numbers theyre the same as theyve always been.

Barcelona predictably dominated the opening stages as Fermin Lopez and Lewandowski tested Paulo Gazzaniga in Gironas goal with two early shots.

Moments later, Lopez went down on the edge of the box and the referee awarded a free kick but when VAR asked him to review his decision for a potential penalty, he gave Girona a free kick instead, much to the shock of the Barcelona players.

Jules Kounde had a goal disallowed when he strayed offside as Girona had no answer to Barcas forays into the box but Gazzaniga stood strong to deny the home side time and again, making four crucial saves in the first half alone.

However, the Argentine keeper could only stand and watch when Yamals free kick was deflected in off Girona defender Ladislav Krejci for an own goal two minutes before the break.

Girona, however, struck back after the restart against the run of play when they won the ball back in midfield and