It had been a long time coming but Javier Mascherano finally opened his account for Barcelona.

In his 319th appearance, Mascherano scored his first goal for the LaLiga titleholders in Wednesday's 7-1 rout of Osasuna.

Under pressure from his team-mates, the 32-year-old utility - who swapped Liverpool for Barca in 2010 - stepped up and converted a 67th-minute penalty at Camp Nou.

"At first I tried to get out of it but under pressure from my team-mates and the crowd I decided to take it on," Mascherano said.

"It would have been a fun moment to remember in year to come had I missed it. I wasn't sure about it at all but it was difficult to say no to my team-mates."

Lionel Messi, Andre Gomes and Paco Alcacer were also on target as Barca stayed top of LaLiga, albeit level on points with bitter rivals Real Madrid, who have a game in hand.