MADRID (AP) — Raphinha and Lamine Yamal celebrated each other's goals with a raised arm and hands linked as Barcelona won 2-0 at 10-man Villarreal on Sunday to stay four points clear of Real Madrid at the top of La Liga.
Raphinha won a penalty after being fouled when cutting inside. He took a slow run-up and sent goalkeeper Luiz Junior the wrong way in the 12th minute for his seventh league goal of the season and Barca's 50th.
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The referee shows a red card to Villarreal's Renato Veiga, right, during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Barcelona in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Barcelona's Lamine Yamal lies on the pitch in pain during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Barcelona in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Barcelona's Raphinha celebrates after scoring the opening goal from a penalty kick during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Barcelona in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Barcelona's Lamine Yamal, right, celebrates with his teammate Barcelona's Raphinha after scoring his side's second goal during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Barcelona in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Barcelona's Raphinha, back, celebrates with his teammate Barcelona's Lamine Yamal after scoring the opening goal from a penalty kick during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Barcelona in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Yamal also grabbed his seventh this season, striking from close range in the 63rd after being set up by midfielder Frenkie de Jong following a goalmouth scramble.
It was a seventh straight win in all competitions for coach Hansi Flick’s side.
Barcelona was without central defender Andreas Christensen, who tore the ACL in his left knee in training on Saturday.
Villarreal defender Renato Veiga was shown a straight red card late in the first half for a heavy tackle from behind on Yamal, who briefly had treatment on the ground.
Villarreal's defeat allowed Atletico Madrid to move into third place with a 3-0 win at Girona. Atletico has played two more games than Villarreal.
Midfielder Koke put Atletico ahead in the 13th minute with a fine half-volley from just outside the penalty area and into the top right corner.
Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak made a stunning save to keep out Axel Witsel's close-range shot midway through the half, clawing it off the line one-handed near the left post.
Atletico doubled its lead in the 38th when midfielder Conor Gallagher's strike from 20 meters (yards) deflected off a defender and wrong-footed goalie Paulo Gazzaniga.
Atletico's traveling fans gave midfielder Thomas Lemar a warm welcome when he came on for Girona in the second half. The former France midfielder is on loan this season at Girona from Atletico, having played nearly 200 games for “Los Colchoneros” (The Mattress Makers) over seven seasons.
Gallagher was substituted in the 77th, having come on in the 28th for Nico Gonzalez.
Veteran forward Antoine Griezmann sealed Atletico's win with a clinical goal in stoppage time.
The former France star swapped quick passes on the edge of the box with fellow substitute Giacomo Raspadori, expertly controlled the ball with the outside of his right foot and guided a low shot into the opposite corner with his left.
Girona remains in 18th place in the 20-team league.
In other matches Sunday, Elche crushed Rayo Vallecano 4-0 and Real Betis beat Getafe by the same scoreline.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
The referee shows a red card to Villarreal's Renato Veiga, right, during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Barcelona in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Barcelona's Lamine Yamal lies on the pitch in pain during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Barcelona in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Barcelona's Raphinha celebrates after scoring the opening goal from a penalty kick during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Barcelona in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Barcelona's Lamine Yamal, right, celebrates with his teammate Barcelona's Raphinha after scoring his side's second goal during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Barcelona in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
Barcelona's Raphinha, back, celebrates with his teammate Barcelona's Lamine Yamal after scoring the opening goal from a penalty kick during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Barcelona in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)
HELSINGBORG, Sweden (AP) — NATO allies and defense officials expressed bewilderment Friday at U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement that he would send 5,000 U.S. troops to Poland just weeks after ordering the same number of forces pulled out of Europe.
The apparent change of mind came after weeks of statements from Trump and his administration about reducing — not increasing — the U.S. military footprint in Europe. Trump's initial order set off a flurry of action among military commanders and left allies already doubtful about America's commitment to Europe's security to ponder what forces they might have to backfill on NATO's eastern flank with Russia and Ukraine.
Earlier this month, the Trump administration said it was reducing levels in Europe by about 5,000 troops, and U.S. officials confirmed about 4,000 service members were no longer rotating into Poland from Germany. The dispatch to Germany of U.S. personnel trained to fire long-range missiles was also halted.
But in a post on Truth Social on Thursday, Trump said he would now send "an additional 5,000 Troops to Poland,” citing his strong ties with Polish President Karol Nawrocki, whom Trump endorsed in elections last year.
“It is confusing indeed, and not always easy to navigate,” Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard told reporters Friday at a meeting she was hosting of her NATO counterparts, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Ministers from the Netherlands and Norway were sanguine about Trump’s latest move, as was Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže, who said allies knew the U.S. troop “posture was being reconsidered, and now there is no change of posture. For now.”
U.S. defense officials also expressed confusion. “We just spent the better part of two weeks reacting to the first announcement. We don’t know what this means either,” said one of two officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military matters.
But Rubio said Washington’s allies understand that changes in the U.S. troop presence in Europe will come as the Trump administration reevaluates its force needs. “I think there’s a broad recognition that there are going to be eventually less U.S. troops in Europe than there has historically been for a variety of reasons,” he said.
The latest surprise came despite a U.S. pledge to coordinate troop deployments, including one from NATO’s top military officer, U.S. Lt. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, on Wednesday.
Trump's initial announcement that he would withdraw troops came as he fumed over remarks by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said that the U.S. was being “humiliated” by the Iranian leadership and criticized what he called a lack of strategy in that war.
Trump told reporters that the U.S. would be cutting even more than 5,000 and also announced new tariffs on European cars. Germany is the continent’s biggest auto producer.
Rubio insisted that Trump’s decision “is not a punitive thing. It’s just something that’s ongoing.”
About 80,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Europe. The Pentagon is required to keep at least 76,000 troops and major equipment on the continent unless NATO allies are consulted and there is a determination that such a withdrawal is in U.S. interests.
The withdrawal of 5,000 troops might drop numbers below that limit.
But Trump's latest post suggests that troop numbers in Europe would not change. Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski welcomed the decision to send more forces to his country, saying it ensures that “the presence of American troops in Poland will be maintained more or less at previous levels.”
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte also welcomed the move. On Thursday, before Trump took to Truth Social again, Rutte had underlined that it was important for Europe to take care of its own security. “We have a process in place. This is normal business,” he told reporters.
At NATO headquarters in Brussels, meanwhile, U.S. officials briefed the allies on the Pentagon's aims for its commitments to the NATO Force Model, which involves contingency planning for Europe’s defense in the event of serious security concerns. It was widely expected that a further reduction of U.S. forces would be coming.
Asked whether any cuts were announced, Rutte said: “I’m afraid it’s much more complicated than that.” He said the procedure “is highly classified” and declined to give details.
Rubio played down concerns about a shift in U.S. force levels in Europe, saying: "Every country has to constantly reevaluate what their needs are, what their commitments are around the world, and how to properly structure that.”
Cook reported from Brussels. Associated Press writer Emma Burrows in London contributed.
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with journalists during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, front second left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, front left, speak with each other during a group photo at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte look at each other as they deliver a statement during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže speaks at the doorstep of the NATO foreign ministers' meeting at Sea U in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte deliver a statement during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte speaks to media at the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)
Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives with his wife Jeanette at Malmo Airport, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Malmo-Sturup, Sweden, ahead of a NATO foreign ministers meeting. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, second from left, shakes hands with Prime Minister of Sweden Ulf Kristersson, as he is greeted by King Carl Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Silvia of Sweden and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden Maria Malmer Stenergard, right, before a dinner at Sofiero Castle in Helsingborg, Sweden, Thursday May 21 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)
Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard speaks to media at the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)
