VITORIA (Spain) (AFP) – Robert Lewandowski's 26-minute hat-trick steered La Liga leaders Barcelona three points clear of Real Madrid with an emphatic 3-0 win at Alaves on Sunday.
The Polish striker reached 10 goals for the season in nine league games, stretching his lead as the division's top goalscorer with a first-half treble.
Champions Madrid beat Villarreal on Saturday to pull level with Barcelona but the Catalans strolled to a comfortable triumph at Alaves' Mendizorroza stadium to continue a strong start to the campaign under new coach Hansi Flick.
"I get a lot of good passes and so it's easier for me to score goals," Lewandowski told DAZN.
"Today in the first half we played well from the first minute, we wanted to attack and score goals.
"If you score three goals in the first half then in the second you can play with everything under control."
Barca secured their eighth victory in nine La Liga matches by taking control from the start.
Lewandowski and winger Raphinha, in superb form this season, were Barcelona's key players in a match they largely dominated against 12th place Alaves.
The Brazil international had a goal disallowed for offside before setting up Lewandowski for the opener with an inviting free-kick, which the striker headed home.
Raphinha burst down the left wing for Barcelona's second, crossing for the veteran Polish forward to knock in with ease.
Alaves goalkeeper Antonio Sivera denied both Raphinha and Lewandowski before the latter completed his hat-trick.
Marc Casado found Eric Garcia, who had replaced the injured Ferran Torres early on, and the defender slipped in Lewandowski to finish clinically across Sivera.
'THE BEST PLAYER'
The 36-year-old hitman looks far sharper than last season and has 12 goals in 11 games across all competitions.
"In front of goal (Lewandowski) is the best player, for me," Flick told reporters.
"It's amazing to score so many goals over such a period... I'm really happy with him and you can see he's 100 percent fit, it's perfect at the moment.
"I'm happy for Lewy but also the other team-mates are really supporting him very (well)."
Alaves thought they had pulled a goal back before the break when Toni Martinez headed home but Nahuel Tenaglia was offside in the build-up.
Martinez hit the post in the second half when a corner escaped Barcelona goalkeeper Inaki Pena, playing in place of the injured Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
Sivera made a fine save to thwart Ansu Fati, who had replaced a subdued Lamine Yamal.
Alaves had another goal disallowed when Santiago Mourino headed in a free-kick, but he had strayed offside -- the hosts were flagged off 11 times in the match, thanks to Barca's high defensive line.
"They were better than us in the first half, although we had a couple of chances... in the second half we improved and we tried until the end," Alaves winger Abde Rebbach told DAZN.
"We're known for the effort we put into every match, that's why we are where we are, and we have to look forward to the next one."
Later on Sunday, Atletico Madrid visit Real Sociedad and Sevilla host Real Betis in a Seville derby.