Valencia defeats Barcelona in final round: Lewandowski's goal can't save champions. Barcelona ended the season with a 1-3 loss to Valencia. Lewandowski scored in his final match for the club. Despite the victory, Valencia missed out on European competitions.
In the final round of La Liga, Barcelona lost to Valencia 1-3, despite a goal from Robert Lewandowski, who played his last match for the Catalan club. The encounter at the Mestalla stadium was notable not only for the result but also for saying farewell to one of the key players of recent years.
The Polish striker put the visitors ahead after an hour of play, finishing off a pass from Ferran Torres and bringing his goal tally for Barcelona to 119 in four seasons. However, just five minutes later, the hosts leveled the score as Javi Guerra struck with precision. Four minutes after that, Valencia took the lead: following a move involving Jesús Vázquez and a deflection off the defenders, Luis Rioja sent the ball into Wojciech Szczęsny’s net.
Late in the match, Valencia could have been awarded a penalty after Vázquez fell, but VAR determined that the foul occurred outside the box. The hosts scored their third goal in stoppage time: Guido Rodríguez found the net with a long-range strike, sealing victory for his team.
Despite earning three points, Valencia failed to secure a spot in European competition—rivals Getafe and Rayo Vallecano also won their matches. Before the match, Valencia fans staged a protest against club owner Peter Lim, but on the pitch, the team showed character and fought until the end for a chance to reach Europe.
In the first half, both teams created chances: for the hosts, Unai Núñez, Luis Rioja, and Diego López stood out, while for the visitors – Alejandro Balde and Lewandowski himself, who hit the post. Barcelona’s goalkeeper Szczęsny made several key saves, and defender Ronald Araújo blocked a dangerous shot from López. In the second half, Valencia lost López to a knee injury but managed to turn the course of the match.
According to ESPN+, the match was attended by 46,457 spectators, with Adrián Cordero Vega refereeing. The final result did not affect Barcelona’s standing—the team finished the season in first place, while Valencia remained outside the European competition zone.
In Spanish football, the end of the season is traditionally marked not only by the battle for titles but also by important personnel changes. Lewandowski’s departure from Barcelona could become one of the key events of the offseason. Similarly, in the NBA playoffs, decisive games can change the entire course of a series—as recently happened in the matchup between the Minnesota Timberwolves and San Antonio Spurs, which was covered in detail in the article on the battle for leadership in the Western Conference semifinals.
For reference: Barcelona are 27-time champions of Spain, while Valencia last won La Liga in 2004. In the 2025/26 season, the race for European tournaments in Spain was tense once again until the very final round.
