Robert Lewandowski nets a brace in Barcelona's rout of Sevilla

With a crucial week of matches on the horizon, Barcelona kicked things off on the right foot with a 5-1 win over Sevilla.

Robert Lewandowski and Pablo Torre both netted a brace with Pedri also finding the back of the net in what was another impressive performance for Barcelona -- this one coming off the international break.

It took a while for the Catalan side to open the score with Lewandowski converting a penalty in the 24th minute following a penalty on Raphinha. Four minutes later, Pedri got his name on the scoresheet after unleashing a strike from outside the area to double Barcelona's lead.

Barcelona all but put the game to rest in the 39th minute as Lewandowski put his foot on a shot from Raphinha that seemed like it was going to go wide of the mark. Lewandowski's touch guided the ball into the back of the net for his brace.

Barcelona took their foot off the gas somewhat during the second half though still the better of the two sides. With the Bayern Munich match midweek, Hansi Flick pulled Lewandowski and Raphinha for Pau Victor and Pablo Torre.

Torre would make the most of his opportunity as he scored Barcelona's fourth in the 82nd minute with his shot taking a deflection off a defender.

Sevilla would get one back five minutes later as Stanis Idumbo beat the offside trap and Pau Cubarsi in a foot race before pulling one past Iñaki Peña. Sevilla's joy wouldn't last long as soon after, Torre got his second as his freekick in the 88th minute wound up in the back of the net after some hesitancy from the keeper.

In between all the goals during the second half, Gavi made his return after being out nearly a year with an ACL tear. He entered the pitch to a standing ovation and Pedri, who he replaced, gave the captain's armband to Gavi.

"Winning like this is very important for the games to come," Pedri said after the match. "Today we had to leave with more than just the three points, we needed that good feeling we got. The coach told us there was going to be spaces at the edge of the box and we took advantage of that."

As Pedri mentioned, it's an important week for Barcelona. In addition to the midweek match against Bayern Munich, their next match in LaLiga is El Clasico against Real Madrid. While it's still early in the season, a win would put them six points in front of their archrivals.

Despite the performance, the only blemish was the goal they conceded late. A goal that annoyed Hansi Flick and something he said they were going to analyze and improve on.

It was nearly a perfect night for Barcelona. Not only did it see the return of Gavi, but also of Fermin Lopez as well as a start for Ansu Fati. Dani Olmo made his return to the bench and while he stayed on the bench, expect Olmo to make his return from injury against Bayern Munich.