Raphinha, lethal from long range

Raphinha scored the equaliser against Mallorca on Tuesday, and that now makes him the first player in the league to have scored twice from outside of the area. Players with one such goal so far include his former team-mate Memphis Depay, Toni Kroos of Real Madrid and Barça's very own Ferrán Torres. But two? Raphinha is on his own.

He only needed three minutes to do it against Betis, controlling the ball with a single touch before firing in with a left-footed thunderbolt. Then last night against Mallorca his beautifully crafted equaliser was almost identical to what, so far, has been the only other goal in his Liga account.

Goalscoring instinct

Raphinha is proving to be a fundamental cog in the works of a team that is not only working its way through defences in its traditional fashion but is also unafraid to have a crack from long range when the opportunity arises. Barça and Sevilla are the two teams in La Liga with the most goals from outside the area (3, the other one being the Torres free kick, also in the 5-0 drubbing of Betis at the Estadi Olímpic).

Only one team in all of Europe's top five leagues (Sassuolo with 4) has scored more goals from outside the box.

Barça is also the top scoring side overall in La Liga, with 18 in their account so far, including no fewer than five against Betis and four against Villarreal. Fellow Catalan outfit Girona are the only team to come close to that number. They have 16 so far, with one game to play against Villarreal later today.