GETAFE: In an enthralling contest, Getafe earned a point as leaders Barcelona were held to a nil-nil draw twice a week in LaLiga on Sunday.
The Catalan Giants, who drew 0-0 with Girona on Monday, would not be happy with this week’s results yet they maintain a healthy lead over second-placed Real Madrid at the top of the standings.
With the current draw, their advantage is cut down to 11 points over arch-rivals, who beat Cadiz 2-0 on Saturday. However, there are still nine games left in the season.
Visitors Barca had two chances to break the deadlock in the 25th minute when Raphinha came close to the target but his shot struck the post before Alejandro Balde’s effort from the rebound also hit the woodwork.
Despite dominating the possession for most of the match, Barcelona looked unimpressive in their attack in the absence of injured players such as Pedri and Ousmane Dembele – two of their mainstays in creating chances this season.
Barcelona next play Atletico Madrid at Camp Nou on next Sunday while 15th-placed Getafe, who sit four points above the relegation zone, visit Mallorca on the same day.
Earlier, Girona thrashed bottom-placed Elche 2-0 at home to go ninth in the standings, thanks to goals in each half by Valentin Castellanos and Oriel Romeu.
In another LaLiga fixture yesterday Atletico Madrid edged past Almeria 2-1 after Antoine Griezmann scored twice in the first half.
Later Sevilla grabbed a sensational 2-0 win at Valencia, credit to Loic Bade and Suso’s strikes in the second half.
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Nacho and Marco Asensio made back-to-back strikes within four second-half minutes half to help Real Madrid claim a 2-0 win over Cadiz and cut leader Barcelona’s lead to 10 points in La Liga on Saturday.
Defending champion Real kept their slim title chances on the hook by crawling up to 62 points, ten points behind Barcelona who play at Getafe on Sunday. Atletico Madrid are third on the table with 57 points and will host Almeria on Sunday.
Madrid controlled the opponents throughout the game, possessing the ball 70 per cent of the time, and created several chances including three shots that hit the post and a few critical stops by Cadiz goalkeeper David Gil.
However, the visitors opened the scoring only in the 72nd minute when defender Nacho received a pass from Aurelien Tchouameni and slotted a powerful long-range shot into the bottom left corner.
Four minutes later, Asensio doubled the side’s lead by netting the ball from the edge of the box into the bottom left corner.
Earlier, Real Betis breezed past Espanyol 3-1 to go fifth on 45 points after Ayoze Perez, Juan Miranda and William Carvalho scored goals each.
Athletic Club beat Real Sociedad 2-0 at home, thanks to a sensational brace by Inaki Williams.
Valladolid, on the other hand, stunned Villareal 2-1 on the latter’s home ground after first-half strikes from Salim Amallah and Jawad El Yamiq.
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MADRID: Rayo Vallecano at home on Friday outclassed Osasuna 2-1 to end their winless streak in the ongoing La Liga 2022/23.
Osasuna’s defender Aridane Hernández attempt to make a tackle close to the goal line but instead pushed the ball into his own goal in the 40th minute.
Isi Palazón then took just three minutes to double Rayo’s lead when the midfielder latched on to a clearance by the defence and volleyed the ball just inside the post.
Osasuna’s Moi Gómez scored a stunning long-range goal in the 66th minute to cut Rayo’s lead to 2-1, but the hosts held on to its advantage to earn its first victory in nine games.
With their first victory, after more than two months, Rayo managed to leapfrog the visitors and moved into eighth place with 40 points, two clear of Osasuna.
Meanwhile, both teams still have a chance to finish sixth at the end of the season, which would earn them a Conference League spot.
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BARCELONA: Table-toppers Barcelona failed to extend their lead to 15 points over defending champions Real Madrid after the 11th-placed Girona held the home side for a goalless draw.
The title-chasing side now sits 13 points clear of second-placed Real Madrid with 10 more matches to go.
Barcelona were not at their best in a Catalan derby as Xavi Hernandez’s side appeared to be still reeling from the aftershocks of their Clasico defeat by Madrid last week in the Copa del Rey.
Mid-table Girona battled strongly and forced the leaders to drop points at home, for the first time in their home after three years.
Barcelona kept a clean sheet for the 21st time in the top flight, but they were unable to fully profit from Real Madrid’s slip-up as they sought to win La Liga for the first time since 2019.
Robert Lewandowski came close to opening the scoring for his side just four minutes into the game, after being set up by Fati, but fired it onto the top of the net.
Barcelona, once again came close to scoring the opener when Girona’s defender Santi Bueno almost netted an own goal but goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga responded well, dived and diverted the ball to safety and barred the hosts from taking the lead.
The goalkeeper made a brilliant save at his near post from Raphinha before clawing away a Ronald Araujo attempt from the resultant corner.
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Nahuel Molina and Mario Hermoso scored first-half goals to give Atleuitoc Madrid a 2-1 win over Rayo Vallecano in La Liga on Sunday and move closer to rivals Real Madrid in the standings.
A superb streak of 12 unbeaten league games has propelled Atletico to a 57-point tally – only two points behind second-placed Real, who faced a shock 2-3 defeat at Bernabeu against Villareal on Saturday.
Barcelona, on the other hand, are leading the standings with 71 points with a game left against Girona on Monday.
Molina took the lead in the 22nd minute after Alvaro Morata set up the Argentina international for his first goal since joining the club last summer.
Hermoso doubled his side’s lead a few minutes later with a header from a corner, taking advantage of a poor clearance by Rayo goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski.
The hosts were a man down after defender Florian Lejeune was sent off early in the second half, but left back Fran Garcia restored some hope by pulling one back in the 85th minute with a brilliant long-range low shot.
The hosts were reduced to 10-man after defender Florian Lejeune’s sent off early in the second half. However, left-back Fran Garcia brought some jubilant moments for the home crowd as he slotted the goal in the 85th minute with a brilliant long-range low shot.
Earlier, Almeria beat Valencia 2-1 to move out of the relegation zone with a minor advantage of three points.
Cadiz thrash nine-man Real Betis 2-0 thanks to second-half goals by Ruben Alcaraz and Chris Ramos.
Mallorca, on the other hand, held Valladolid to a 3-3 draw in the action-packed game at the latter’s home ground, thanks to an extra-time penalty by Vedat Muriqi.
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MADRID: Samu Chukwueze scored a brace to give Real Madrid a major blow to already faint title hopes in La Liga as they were handed a shocking 3-2 defeat by Villarreal at home on Saturday.
Just days after thrashing arch-rivals Barcelona 4-0 at Camp Nou to reach Cop del Rey final. Real fell to a bitter loss which left them 12 points behind the table-topers Barca.
Barcelona, however, have an opportunity to extend their lead to 15 points at the top when they face Girona on Sunday.
Despite taking the lead twice, Carlo Ancelotti’s side could not build on the momentum.
Madrid opened the scoring after 15 minutes through Villarreal’s Pau Torres’ own goal but Chukwueze slotted the equalizer in the 39th.
Vinicius Jr restored the one-goal cushion for the home side after the break with a simple finish in front of the Villarreal goal for his ninth league goal of the season.
Quique Setien’s side overcame Real’s lead again in the 71st minute when Jose Luis Morales fired home from close range, with a VAR check reversing the initial offside call.
Chukwueze scored his second 10 minutes from time and silenced the home crowd at Santiago Bernabeu with an excellent strike from the edge of the box to the top left corner.
With the win, Villarreal climbed to fifth place with 47 points and are in contention for a Champions League spot.
Earlier, Real Sociedad beat Getafe 2-0 at home to go forth on the standings with 51 points.
Meanwhile, Athletic Club thumped Espanyol 2-1 thanks to Inaki Williams and Nico Williams’ goals.
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SEVILLE: Miguel Rodriguez and Goncalo Paciencia struck late and powered Celta Vigo to mark an astounding comeback to hold Sevilla for a 2-2 in their La Liga fixture at Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium here.
The hosts had an unwanted start to their clash with Celta as they had Pape Gueye sent off the field just after 19 minutes but still managed to take the lead with goals from Youssef En-Nesyri and Marcos Acuna as the clock ran down.
Rodriguez, though, gave Celta a sigh of relief by netting the first for his side in the 89th minute, while Paciencia struck second for Celta to level the scores at 2-2.
Minutes later, Sevilla were then down to nine men when Marcos Acuna was sent off for dissent, leaving Jose Luis Mendilibar’s side struggling.
The 2-2 stalemate against Celta barred Sevilla from soaring away from the danger zone.
Sevilla, 13th, sit five points clear of the relegation zone but have played one more game than the teams below them.
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VALENCIA: Valencia extended their fight against La Liga relegation as the home side made a late comeback to hold better-ranked Rayo Vallecano for a 1-1 draw at the Estadio Mestalla on Monday.
The stalemate powered Valencia to escape the relegation zone on goal difference after claiming a crucial point against Rayo Vallecano, who remained in the eighth spot with 37 points just behind Athletic Club on goal difference.
However, it was not an easy affair for the home side to steal a crucial point as Rayo Vallecano had a flying start as the visitors took an early lead within the first 10 minutes, thanks to a composed finish by Santi Comesana.
Valencia responded after the break with Justin Kluivert forcing an amazing save from Stole Dimitrievski as the home side attempted to increase the pressure.
Kluivert then eventually prove vital in the dying minutes, slotting home a controversial late penalty to extend Valencia’s unbeaten home record to three league games.
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MADRID: Karim Benzema netted three goals in seven first-half minutes as Real Madrid stormed through Valladolid 6-0 on Sunday to cut leader Barcelona’s lead to 12 points in La Liga.
The hat trick took the French forward to 14 league goals this season — three behind the top-scorer Barca’s Robert Lewandowski.
Rodrygo opened the scoring in the 22nd minute before Benzema seized control at the Bernabeu, scoring a hat-trick in just seven minutes to totally outclass the opponents before the first half.
Benzema netted his first one with a diving header from a Vinicius Jr cross while barely escaping a collision with the far post.
The Brazilian then set up the second only three minutes later with a simple pass for the striker to score from the edge of the box.
The French forward completed his hat trick with an impressive overhead effort from inside the six-yard box and grabbed a Rodrygo cross that was behind him to score while his back was towards the goal.
Rodrygo then assisted Marco Asensio in the second half as he played a one-two pass with the Brazilian forward before sending the ball home.
Lucas Vazquez produced the final of the evening in the added time set up by Eden Hazard, who made his first league appearance since September as a substitute for Benzema.
With the win, second-placed Real surge to 59 points, five ahead of third-placed Atletico Madrid, who beat Real Betis 1-0 later on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Villareal edged past Real Sociedad to take sixth place in the standings with 44 points, thanks to second-half strikes by Dani Parejo and Nicolas Jackson.
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ELCHE: Robert Lewandowski scored a brace as Barcelona wreaked havoc on bottom-placed Elche to win 4-0 and go 15 points clear of arch-rivals Real Madrid at the top of La Liga on Saturday.
The Catalan giants strengthen their position in the title race after this win while second-placed Real will look to keep their slim hopes alive with a win against Valladolid on Sunday.
League’s top scorer Lewandowski ended his goal drought after three goalless games when he opened the scoring in the 20th minute with a close-range finish after Ronald Araujo headed the ball down to him in front of the goal.
Ansu Fati doubled the lead in the 55th minute by receiving a pass from Ferran Torres in his own half, moving towards the outside of the box, and hitting low into the far corner for his first league goal since October.
Lewandowski scored his second of the night 10 minutes later after Gavi snatched the ball off Elche’s defence and set up brilliantly for the polish strike in the box.
Torres slotted the fourth goal of the visitors in the 70th minute to wrap up the game.
With the rout, Elche were pushed deep into the crisis with only 13 points from 27 games, 14 points away from the safety zone.
Earlier, Sevilla beat Cadiz 2-0 to go 13th in the standing on 31 points while the opponents were left stranded on the brink of the relegation zone.
Meanwhile, 14th-placed Getafe held Athletic Club to a nil-nil draw at home.
Girone edged past Espanyol, thanks to a late penalty scored by Christian Stunai two minutes before time, to jump to 10th place with 34 points.
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