Dani Olmo and Ferran Torres scored to lead Barcelona to a 2-0 victory over Las Palmas on Saturday, regaining the top spot in La Liga.
After Atletico Madrid beat Valencia to momentarily take pole position, the Catalans replaced them with a narrow away victory and now lead the Rojiblancos by one point.
Substitute Olmo finished well before Torres drilled home to settle the game and avenge Barcelona’s stunning home defeat to Las Palmas earlier in the season.
Champions Real Madrid, third, can draw level with Barcelona if they defeat Girona at home on Saturday.
“We don’t feel pressure; we want to be at the top; we know (winning the league) is up to us,” Olmo told Movistar.
“Today we took three important points, so we’re going home happy.”
Olmo hasn’t played much since the club’s financial issues prompted him to be unregistered at the beginning of the year until Spain’s National Sports Council granted him a temporary solution that allowed him to play again.
In January, the former RB Leipzig star missed several games due to a calf problem.
“I am in shape, I’m 100 per cent, with a lot of desire to play and get back in the team,” he said.
“I’m happy to be able to play and contribute to the team’s success.
“In the end, I want to score as many as I can to help the team and keep winning, which is the important thing.”
In a tight first half, Barcelona’s attack was ineffective, and they lacked the quality required to unpick the hosts’ defenders.
At halftime, Flick replaced the quiet Fermin Lopez with playmaker Dani Olmo.
The Spain international’s first contribution was a poor pass that went out of play, but he swiftly regained focus.
Lamine Yamal sprinted forward and slipped the ball to Olmo, who used his footwork to find space in the box and finish.
Las Palmas surged forward in quest of an equaliser, and former Barcelona striker Sandro Ramirez sent a shot well wide of Wojciech Szczesny’s post.
– ‘Not as serious as we want’ –
Yamal, on the other end, exploded into life, becoming increasingly threatening, and crossed for the league’s top scorer, Robert Lewandowski, who sent his header straight at Jasper Cillessen.
Lewandowski struck following superb work by Alejandro Balde, as the Polish veteran took advantage of the additional space provided at the back by the hosts.
When a shot struck the back of Eric Garcia’s arm in the area, Las Palmas called for a penalty, but VAR determined that there was an offside in the build-up.
Eight minutes of stoppage time were added to give Las Palmas hope, but it was Barcelona who scored.
Raphinha scooped up a sloppy pass in the back and released Torres, who rifled past Cillessen to clinch Barcelona’s victory.
“I don’t think we had a very good match; we were five or ten per cent (below our best level),” acknowledged Barcelona coach Flick.
“It was not as serious as we normally want to play.”
Las Palmas’ defeat places them 17th, level on points with Valencia (18th) in the relegation zone.
