FC Barcelona beat Aston Villa 3-0 at the Spotify Camp Nou on Tuesday in the Champions League, giving Hansi Flick's side a boost after their recent debacles against Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid. Frenkie de Jong started on the bench for the Catalans.

At home, Barcelona made a dream start. Lamine Yamal seized on sloppy play as Aston Villa tried to build from the back and fired the hosts ahead in the seventh minute. A few minutes later, Ian Maatsen picked up a yellow card, leaving the left-back needing to tread carefully.

Aston Villa pushed for more control, but Barcelona goalkeeper Joan García frustrated them with a fine save from a fierce Johan Manzambi shot. The Catalan giants took their 1-0 lead into half-time.

After the break, a deflected Raphinha shot flew into the net to make it 2-0. That left the visitors from England with an even tougher task and dealt a major setback to Aston Villa, who visit struggling Manchester United this coming weekend.

Barcelona put the game to bed in the rain after 65 minutes. Raphinha judged a long ball from the back perfectly before finishing calmly. Aston Villa still looked to salvage some pride, but Leon Goretzka's header struck the post.

In the closing stages, Unai Emery brought on Tammy Abraham for Nicolas Jackson. De Jong was already on the pitch for Barcelona, having replaced the exhausted Pedri for the final 20 minutes.

Barcelona's straightforward evening at the Spotify Camp Nou gave them a good dress rehearsal for Sunday's big LaLiga match against Atlético Madrid. The Madrid side are second, two points behind leaders Barcelona.