Tag: La Liga

Adri Embarba struck a late penalty to secure a draw for bottom-ranked Almeria against Real Sociedad in the La Liga 2023-24 clash at Reale Arena on Sunday.

Real Sociedad entered into the match with a three-match winning streak, but they were taken by surprise by the visitors.

The hosts made three unsuccessful attempts to earn the advantage before Embarbe rose to the occasion and got the lead for Almeria at the half-hour mark.

Marc Pubill assisted Embarba, who smoothly sent the ball from outside the box to the bottom right corner.

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However, Sheraldo Becker hit the equalizer two minutes later as he found Javi Galan’s cross in the centre of the box and guided the ball past the goalkeeper.

Becker appeared to hit another one but the goalkeeper took swift action to extend Real Sociedad’s wait for the second goal.

The first half ended at a 1-1 stalemate but Mikel Oyarzabal pushed the hosts ahead within ten minutes into the second half after an assist by Becker.

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Real Sociedad dominated the game in the second half and were set to extend their winning streak to four games before Igor Zubeldia was shown a red card in the 85th minute.

Almeria was awarded a penalty, which was successfully converted by Embarba to earn a 2-2 draw.

Meanwhile, in another La Liga clash, Athletic Bilbao’s hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions League suffered a blow as Dani Parejo’s injury-time penalty secured a 1-1 draw for 10-man Villarreal at San Mames.

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PALMA: Aurelien Tchouameni scored a long-range goal to help Real Madrid secure a 1-0 victory over Mallorca in their La Liga 2023-24 match at Estadi Mallorca Son Moix on Saturday.

The victory helped Real Madrid to stay eight points clear of Barcelona at the top of La Liga points table ahead of the upcoming El Clasico.

The France midfielder, who is suspended for the second leg of Madrid’s Champions League quarter-final away to Manchester City next week, scored three minutes into the second half with a deflected 25-metre drive.

Jude Bellingham rattled the crossbar in the first half with a rasping effort from just outside the area as coach Carlo Ancelotti reshuffled his attack with Wednesday’s trip to England in mind, leaving out Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo.

Tchouameni’s third goal of the season put Real Madrid ahead, with Brahim Diaz denied a second by the legs of Mallorca goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic and Fede Valverde’s attempt cleared off the line.

Vinicius appeared off the bench for the last 30 minutes but Rodrygo and Toni Kroos were unused substitutes after a thrilling 3-3 draw with Manchester City in Tuesday’s first leg.

Sergi Darder’s spectacular dipping shot forced a flying stop from Andriy Lunin as Madrid extended their unbeaten league run to 25 games, keeping Barcelona a safe distance behind ahead of next week’s Clasico in the Spanish capital.

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“It’s a very important victory, which brings us closer to the title. We’re on a good run and now we’re going to think about Wednesday, that we have time to recover well and try to do our best,” said Ancelotti.

“Having an advantage before (next) Sunday’s game is very important and that was the goal.”

Copa del Rey runners-up Mallorca stay in 15th, six points above the relegation zone.

Meanwhile, Barcelona, who are desperately trying to force their way back into the title race, matched Madrid’s result with a 1-0 win of their own at third-bottom Cadiz.

Joao Felix’s clever overhead late in the first half secured the points as coach Xavi Hernandez made sweeping changes to the team that beat Paris Saint-Germain 3-2 in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.

The Portugal international led the attack in the absence of the suspended Robert Lewandowski, acrobatically hooking in the only goal after a Cadiz defender’s looping header from a corner fell directly to him.

Fermin Lopez had an effort scrambled off the line and Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s sprawling save to claw away a Diadie Samassekou piledriver preserved a sixth successive clean sheet in the league for the visitors.

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Atletico Madrid completed a good four days as they followed their Champions League quarter-final first-leg victory over Borussia Dortmund with a 3-1 La Liga victory over third-placed Girona, courtesy of Antoine Griezmann’s brace.

Antoine Griezmann scored twice as Diego Simeone’s men moved to within four points of their opponents and pulled five clear of fifth-placed Athletic Bilbao in the race for Champions League qualification.

The Basques play Villarreal on Sunday.

Atletico won the home leg of their European tie 2-1 on Wednesday and visit Dortmund for the second leg on Tuesday.

Girona took the lead in Madrid with a fourth-minute goal from close range by Artem Dovbyk that took him on to a league-leading 17 goals.

Antoine Griezmann responded by converting a 34th-minute penalty.

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Angel Correa then gave the home side the lead six minutes into added time at the end of the first half.

Griezmann extended his lead five minutes into the second half, taking advantage of a defensive error to fire home his 13th league goal of the season.

With an eye on the game in Germany, the France attacker was then replaced shortly after the hour mark by Marcos Llorente.

Girona’s fifth defeat away from home, gives Barcelona, buoyed by their midweek 3-2 Champions League win at Paris Saint-Germain, the chance to tighten their grip on second when they visit struggling Cadiz in the last game of the day.

Real Madrid, eight points clear at the top of the La Liga standings, play at Mallorca later on Saturday.

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VILLARREAL: Saul Niguez scores in the 87th minute to secure a win for Atletico Madrid against Villarreal in their La Liga 2023-24 fixture at Estadio de la Cerámica on Monday.

The 2-1 victory pushed Atletico Madrid up to fourth place in the La Liga standings, now trailing third-placed Girona by only seven points.

The visitors opened the scoring early on with Axel Witsel finding Rodrigo Riquelme’s cross following a corner and headed the ball to the top right corner of the net.

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However, Villarreal levelled five minutes into the second half as Alexander Sorloth got his name on the scoring sheet.

He found Gerard Moreno in the 49th minute and hit the equalizer from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner.

The entertaining clash was heading towards a stalemate when Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone substituted Pablo Barrios with Saul Niguez in the 83rd minute.

Saul did not take too long and scored the winner in less than five minutes after coming off the bench courtesy of an assist by Cesar Azpilicueta.

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“(Saul) entered the game well and scored a great goal,” Simeone said after the match. “I’ve put him on a bunch of times because I believe in him and I hope he can give us a lot.”

Simeone said his team still needed to improve to lock down Champions League qualification for next season.

“Athletic are having a very good season, Girona aren’t giving up, and we have to improve,” said the coach. “Pace of play and intensity decide things and we have to improve in that regard.”

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MADRID: Brazilian star Rodrygo scored struck twice to lead Real Madrid to a 2-0 victory against Atheltic Club during the La Liga 2023-24 match at Santiago Bernabéu on Sunday.

Real Madrid extended their lead to eight points ahead of defending La Liga champions Barcelona at second spot. Meanwhile, Girona are following Barcelona closely with a difference of two points only.

Los Blancos earned the advantage early on with Rodrygo dribbling through the middle and easing past goalkeeper Julen Agirrezabala to open the scoring.

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The visitors struggled throughout the first half, however, they had a faint chance towards the end of the first half as Gorka Guruzeta found Oihan Sancet in the box and attempted to equalize only to be saved by the goalkeeper.

Athletic Club made some aggressive attempts after the first half to level but could not get past the strong opposition.

But Rodrygo rained on their parade as he doubled the lead in the 73rd minute with a brilliant goal following a fast break.

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This proved to be the last nail in the coffin as Real Madrid denied any chances of a comeback from the visitors to stay on top of the La Liga points table.

In another La Liga clash, Girona defeated Real Betis 3-2 at Municipal de Montilivi to close the gap with second-positioned Barcelona.

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BARCELONA: Brazilian winger Raphinha steered Barcelona to a 1-0 victory over Las Palmas during the La Liga 2023-24 clash here at Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys on Saturday.

The Catalans closed the gap with La Liga leaders Real Madrid with a difference of five points after sinking 12th-ranked Las Palmas.

Raphinha earned the advantage for Barcelona in the 19th minute however the goal was overruled due to offside.

Despite not getting a breakthrough, the home side dominated throughout the first half and kept challenging Las Palmas’ defence.

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Meanwhile, Las Palmas’ struggles doubled in the 24th minute as their goalkeeper, Alvaro Valles received a red card in the 24th minute for taking out Raphinha who was headed towards an open net.

The first half ended without any goals, but Barcelona continued to create chances. Eventually, Joao Felix passed the ball over the defenders to Raphinha, who headed it past the goalkeeper and scored the match-winner.

Notably, Barcelona are unbeaten in 11 games since their coach Xavi Hernandez said that he would leave at the end of the season and their recent form has given them some faint hope of retaining their title.

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Leaders Real Madrid will face Athletic Bilbao on Sunday at the Santiago Bernabeu, aiming to restore their eight-point advantage on the Catalans in second.

“They’re three important points, we know they will be important at the end of the season,” Raphinha told Movistar.

“We’ll keep fighting until the end and we won’t give up until the league is over.”

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MADRID: Joao Felix opened the scoring for Barcelona and guided them to a 3-0 victory against his parent club Atletico Madrid at Metropolitano Stadium on Sunday during the ongoing La Liga 2023-24.

Barcelona became the first team to defeat Atletico Madrid at their home stadium this season, breaking their 25-game undefeated streak at Metropolitano Stadium.

Notably, Atletico’s last home defeat also came against the Catalans in January 2023.

With this victory, the defending champions displaced Girona at the second position in the La Liga standings only behind Real Madrid.

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Felix, who is on loan from Atletico Madrid, gave the visitors an early advantage with a 38th-minute goal after he found Robert Lewandowski’s cross and hit from the centre of the box.

Lewandowski himself also got his name on the scoring sheet and doubled the advantage in the early minutes of the second half with a right-footed shot from the right side of the box.

The Polish striker provided another assist as Fermin Lopez powered a header in the 65th minute to make it 3-0.

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Barcelona are unbeaten in the last 10 matches since their coach Xavi announced that he would leave at the end of the season.

“I’ll push the (players) more than ever,” Xavi told DAZN, refusing to throw in the towel on Barcelona’s title defence.

“And now that I’m leaving, even more so — we will try to improve and compete for La Liga and the Champions League, the two most important trophies.”

Meanwhile, in another La Liga clash Rayo Vallecano edged Real Betis 2-0, while Villarreal and Almeria Almeria registered 1-0 victories over Valencia and Las Palmas respectively.

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MADRID: Real Madrid sunk Celta Vigo 4-0 to extend their lead at the top of the standings in the ongoing La Liga 2023-24 at Santiago Bernabéu on Sunday.

Real Madrid is currently seven points ahead of second-placed Girona while defending La Liga champions Barcelona sitting in third position with a difference of meagre one point.

The home team drew first blood in the 21st minute with star winger Vinícius Júnior hitting the goal from very close range following a corner.

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Celta Vigo managed to deny further attempts by Real Madrid to extend their lead before they shot in their own feet in the 79th minute.

Celta Vigo goalkeeper, Vincente Guaita, almost saved Rudiger’s header after a corner, but it rattled the crossbar and bounced back down for an own goal.

Their trouble did not end there as nine minutes later a mix-up between Guaita and Carlos Dominguez resulted in another own goal.

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With Real Madrid cruising to a 3-0 victory in stoppage time, 19-year-old Arda Guler showed his onfield prowess to score his first goal for the home team.

“I’m very happy to be at Real Madrid. It’s the best club in the world and, although it’s difficult, I believe I have the quality and character to overcome it,” Guler said after the match.

Meanwhile, in other matches in La Liga, Athletic Club registered a 2-0 victory over Las Palmas, while, Villarreal edged Real Betis 3-2.

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Valencia defender Mouctar Diakhaby has undergone surgery on the severe knee injury he suffered playing against Real Madrid in La Liga last weekend, his club said on Friday.

“It was an arduous operation, but a success,” Valencia doctor Pedro Lopez said in a video published by the club.

“It involved the reconstruction of multiple ligaments but we are happy with how it went,” he added, revealing that “many ligament structures were damaged”.

The 27-year-old French-born Guinea international centre-back dislocated his right knee in the 86th minute of the 2-2 draw last Sunday.

He collapsed to the ground in agony in his own penalty box, the leg buckling as Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni fell into him.

It was immediately clear the injury was extremely serious, and Diakhaby spent the next 48 hours under observation in hospital in Valencia.

He then travelled to the French city of Lyon to undergo an operation performed by renowned knee surgeon Bertrand Sonnery-Cottet.

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Lopez, the Valencia doctor, said Diakhaby would stay for the next two weeks in Lyon where he will undergo tests and then start his rehabilitation.

“He might undergo an arthroscopy in six weeks”, said Lopez, adding that the player will “gradually begin the recovery process”.

However, he did not give a timeframe for Diakhaby to return to action.

“The situation now is about looking forward and remaining optimistic. In all this long process that awaits us it is really important that the player keeps his spirits up.”

Spanish media reports have suggested Diakhaby faces at least 10 months on the sidelines.

Mouctar Diakhaby made his professional breakthrough at Lyon and played 55 top-team games for them before moving to Valencia in 2018 for a reported 15 million euros. He featured in the Valencia team that won the Copa del Rey in 2019.

Having been capped by France at Under-21 level, he later chose to play for Guinea and recently helped them reach the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast.

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PAMPLONA: Ante Budimir scored a late goal to guide Osasuna to a 1-0 victory over Alaves in their La Liga 2023-24 clash at El Sadar Stadium on Monday.

The first half of the game remained goalless as both teams made several efforts to earn the lead but could not get a breakthrough.

Budimir came close to opening the scoring in the 36th minute when he found a cross by Ruben Garcia following a corner and hit a header but it narrowly missed the goal.

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Meanwhile, Alaves goalkeeper made an impressive save to deny Budimir another goal at the stroke of the first half.

But the Croatian striker did not slow down and broke the deadlock to score the only goal in the match, leading Osasuna to their 10th victory in the ongoing La Liga season.

Budimir once again met Garcia’s cross and hit a left-footed shot from outside the box which hit the top left corner a mere 14 minutes before the final time.

The Croatian stood out in the match courtesy of his brilliance in the field and the black protective face mask he wore.

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After the match, he reflected on his performance as well as the mask, which he wore after suffering a nose injury during the Las Palmas match last week.

“The mask has been good. It was the only way to play, and playing is the only thing that matters,” said Budimir.

“As for the goal, it was a clean strike. And then you just enjoy seeing it hit the net.”

Meanwhile, in another La Liga clash, defending champions Barcelona and Atheltic Club settled for a goalless draw.

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