Tag: LaLiga

MADRID: Marco Asensio and Vinicius Junior scored second-half goals to put Real Madrid’s La Liga campaign back on track as they sealed a dominant 2-0 win over struggling Valencia on Thursday. 

The defending champions jumped to 45 points in second place, five behind table leaders Barcelona. who beat Real Betis on Wednesday.

Valencia, who sacked manager Gennaro Gattuso the previous day, were handed their fifth straight defeat last night and are 14th in the standings with 20 points, one clear of the relegation zone.

Valencia defender Gabriel Paulista was sent off with a straight red 18 minutes from final time as he chopped down Vinicius with a ruthless tackle, almost starting a brawl among players on the pitch.

Real controlled the game for most parts but wasted a few opportunities in the first half.  VAR ruled out Antonio Rudiger’s goal just before the break for a Benzema foul in the build-up.

Real rebounded strongly after half-time as they scored two in two minutes, an excellent curling shot into the top corner by Asensio after 52 minutes followed by Vinicius’ close-range smash to finish off a swift counter-attack.

Real Madrid will next face Mallorca on Sunday.

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VILLAREAL: Sergio Camello struck a second-half winner to take Rayo Vallecano to seventh place in the La Liga table as they beat Villarreal 1-0 at El Madrigal on Monday. 

Vallecano jumps ahead of eighth-placed Osasuna with 29 points while Villareal takes fifth position and levels on point with sixth-placed Real Betis.

Barcelona, however, cemented their position at the top since they are five points clear of second-placed Real Madrid, who were held in a nil-nil draw by Real Sociedad on Sunday.

Vallecano dominated the home side right from the start and made a few unsuccessful attempts in the first half.

Camello broke the deadlock in the 72nd minute with a superb solo and finding the back of the back nets from the edge of the box.

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MADRID: Real Sociedad goalkeeper Alex Remiro erected a bulwark to leave Real Madrid frustrated as they finished in a nil-nil draw at Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday. 

An unwanted outcome at home left Madrid five points behind leaders Barcelona who edged Girona 1-0 on Saturday to extend their lead to 47 points in La Liga.

Madrid made 20 goal attempts but Sociedad weathered the storm thanks to a string of excellent saves by Remiro, who ensured a point for his side on its visit.

Vinicius Junior wasted three chances, including two from close range with Remiro repelling all of them. The keeper also blocked the efforts by Karim Benzema, Toni Kroos and Rodrydo.

Real unleashed a solid attack from the beginning and created a few chances in the first half through Benzema and Vinicous’ slick moves.

Benzema constructed Real’s first chance in the seventh minute when he dribbled past three defenders but had his close-range shot stopped by Remiro.

Vinicius created another soon afterwards, beating defender Igor Zubeldia to run into the box but his right-footed effort went wide.

Rodrygo also fired a shot from the edge of the box in the 35th minute and once again, Remiro thwarted the effort with a stunning save.

Vinicius had his second chance before the break when he received the ball from Benzema but Remiro blocked his low shot with his left leg.

The Brazilian winger received his last opportunity in the 70th minute but the goalkeeper intercepted the one-on-one chip shot.

Earlier Atletico Madrid, however, edged past Osasuna 1-0 thanks to a second-half winner by Saul Niguez in an away fixture at El Sadar.

Meanwhile, Celta Vigo shocked Athletic Club with Iago Aspas scoring the decider in the 71st minute to steer his side above the relegation zone and equal points with 17th-placed Valladolid, who beat Valencia 1-0 on Sunday.

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GIRONA: Pedri’s second-half strike earned Barcelona three more points and maintained their top position in the La Liga table as they beat Girona 1-0 on Saturday.

Barcelona jumped to 47 points, six ahead of their arch-rivals and second-placed Real Madrid who will host Real Sociedad on Sunday.

Girona, however, slipped to 12th and level on 21 points with 13th-placed Sevilla who later beat Elche 3-0.

Xavi Hernandez made a few adjustments to his starting lineup, which defeats Real Sociedad in Copa del Rey on Wednesday, resting key players including Robert Lewandowski and  Ronald Araujo.

Despite outplaying the opponents in the first half, Barcelona failed to create clear-cut chances. In the 14th minute, Ousmane Dembele was able to test Girona goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga, but he made a crucial stop. Eleven minutes later, Dembele was forced off the field due to an injury.

Pedri broke the deadlock after the hour mark and scored the lone goal of the game.

Meanwhile, Sevilla’s convincing 3-0 win came on the back of a sensational first-half display which witnessed three goals within 20 minutes.

Youssef En-Nesyn scored a brace with Marcos Acuna striking in between to give Sevilla a comforting lead before the break.

Later Real Betis edged past Getafe 1-0 thanks to a late penalty by Borja Iglesias in the dying minutes.

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BARCELONA: Pedri’s first-half strike earned Barcelona three more points and maintained their top position in the La Liga table as they beat Getafe 1-0. 

Barcelona jumped to 44 points, three ahead of their arch-rivals and second-placed Real Madrid who also defeat Athletic Club 2-0 later on Sunday.

Getafe, however, slipped to 16th and level on 17 points with Celta Vigo and 18th-placed Real Valladolid, barely above the relegation zone thanks to a better goal difference.

In preparation for Wednesday’s Copa del Rey quarterfinal match against Real Sociedad, head coach Xavi Hernandez made many adjustments to his starting lineup, resting key players including Robert Lewandowski, Ronald Araujo, and Frenkie de Jong.

Pedri broke the deadlock in the 34th minute by latching onto Raphinha’s pass and guiding it to the back of the nets.

Barcelona dominated the opposition throughout the game, holding possession of the ball for about 70% of the time. However, with only four shots on target during the entire match, the Catalan Giants did not produce many obvious opportunities to widen their lead.

Meanwhile, experienced Karim Benzema and Toni Kross scored goals to take Real Madrid home with flying colours at San Mames.

Ballon d’Or winner Benzema gave his side a lead in the 23rd minute with an eloquent left-footed finish from the centre of the box while Toni Kroos extended the lead in the dying minutes of the game with a long-range shot.

Earlier, a late penalty shot from Dani Parejo deep into the stoppage time helped fifth-placed Villareal sink Girona 1-0 at El Madrigal.

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MADRID: Antoine Griezmann put up a stellar performance to take Atletico Madrid back on the winning track as they claimed a commanding 3-0 win over Real Valladolid in La Liga on Saturday. 

Griezamann, Alvaro Morata and Mario Hermoso scored first-half goals to earn points for Atletico just for the second time in their last seven league matches.

With a fifth straight defeat, Vallodolid, however, entered the unwanted relegation zone as they slipped to the 18th place after Sevilla went one point ahead of them following a 1-0 victory over Cadiz.

Atletico, on the other hand, jumps to the fourth and are 10 points behind table-toppers Barcelona, who still have two games in hand.

At Metropolitano, the home side took the commanding position early on, striking all three of their goals in a 10-minute span.

Griezmann set up the opener with a flick for Morata to score in the 18th minute, before getting on the scoresheet himself with a brilliantly executed backheel goal.

The Frenchman played a part in the third goal as well, finding Hermoso with a free-kick. Hermoso’s 28th-minute header was blocked by Valladolid goalkeeper Jordi Masip but the rebound landed back at his feet and the Atletico defender found the net.

Earlier, Espanyol beat Real Betis 1-0 thanks to the decider scored by Martin Braithwaite in the 43rd minute.

Meanwhile, Real Sociedad earned a dominant 2-0 win over Rayo Vallecano with a strike each from Alexander Sorioth and Ander Barrenetxea.

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CADIZ: Elche’s Ezequiel Ponce struck in the 81st minute to end his side’s five-match losing streak with a 1-1 draw against Cadiz in the ongoing La Liga 2022/23.

Cadiz were in complete control of the game when Brian Ocampo struck the opener in just the seventh minute.

Following the early deficit, Elche responded with some close calls but Jeremias Ledesma blocked them to keep the hosts in the lead.

Ponce then finally dodged the Cadiz defences and fired in an equalizer in the 81st minute, which powered the side to hold home side Cadiz for a 1-1 draw.

A thrilling draw against Cadiz was their first after five successive defeats while their winless streak extended to 17 matches.

Elche also remained the only team which yet to taste triumph after fellow strugglers Cadiz ended the winning drought with a victory over Valencia.

Despite forcing the draw, Elche continued to stay at rock bottom with a mere five points, while Cadiz moved to 18th place.

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ALMERIA: In another disappointing outcome, Atletico Madrid dropped two more points on Sunday after they were held to a 1-1 draw by Almeria in LaLiga on Sunday.

Angel Correa gave Diego Simeone’s team an early lead in the 18th minute before Almeria found an equalizer through El Bilal Toure in the 37th minute.

With an effort ruled for offside in the first half and brilliant saves by Almeria goalkeeper Fernando Martinez to deny Alvaro Morata and Correa in the second half kept Atletico at bay.

The visiting side’s frustration grew further in the dying minutes when Sergio Regulation was sent off for two yellow cards, 20 minutes after he took the pitch as a substitute.

Atletico, who have won only one of their last six La Liga games that too against bottom-placed Elche, are fourth in the standings, level at 28 points with Villarreal and Real Betis.

They are 13 points behind table leaders Barcelona, who have a game in hand.

Earlier Espanyol beat Getafe 2-1, with striker Javi Puado scoring the winner in the second half.

In the sixth minute, Joselu lobbed David Soria to give Espanyol the lead, but Enes Unal quickly tied the score with a spectacular effort of his own from a wide-left position.

Puado, however, earned points for his side with a solo dribble and excellent finish in the 62nd minute, helping Espanyol jump ahead of opponent Getafe in the table on the 14th.

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SAB SEBASTIAN: Real Sociedad claimed their fourth win in a row to make their way into the top three in the La Liga table as they defeated Athletic Club 3-1 at Anoeta Stadium on Saturday.

The home side dominated their Basque rivals as Alexander Sorioth, Takefusa Kubo and Mikel Oyarzabal scored a goal each to earn points for the Sociedad.

Real Sociedad, after last night’s win, claimed the third spot in La Liga, three points behind second-placed Real Madrid while Barcelona are six points ahead of them at the top.

Sorioth opened the scoring in the 25th minute before Kubo doubled the lead 12 minutes later, however, Oihan Sancet brought the equation to 2-1 before the first half.

Sociedad regained the two-goal cushion with a penalty in the second half as Oyarzabal netted the ball from the spot in the 62nd minute.

Earlier, Osasuna edged past Mallorca thanks to the winner scored by Aimar Oroz early in the second half.

Meanwhile, Girona came from behind to seal a thrilling win over Sevilla with a late decider from Yangel Herrera.

Herrera struck the winner in the 88th minute after Cristhian Stuani grounded Sevilla’s first-half lead given by Tiangay Nanzou in the 13th minute.

However, in another fixture on Saturday, Isi Palazon earned vital points for Rayo Vallecano with a 66th-minute winner as they beat Valladolid 1-0.

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BILBAO: Osasuna held Athletic Club in a nil-nil draw at home to deny them a Champions League stand after failing to move Real Betis from fourth place in LaLiga table.

In the last game of matchday 16 on Monday, Athletic Club and Osasuna tied without goals at Nuevo San Mames.

Despite numerous chances, none of the teams was able to pierce into the rival’s defence after a 90-minute of high-paced action.

Athletic Club’s Nico Williams failed to capitalize on two very clear opportunities in the closing minutes, leaving Osasuna happy with their first point after two successive defeats.

Osasuna lost to Barcelona 2-1 and Real Sociedad by 2-0 in their last two encounters.

With the draw, the visiting side jumped a spot to the eighth position with 24 points.

Meanwhile, Barcelona has a three-point advantage over Real Madrid at the top of the standings. Real Sociedad is third, nine points behind the Catalan giants after 16 matches.

The action-filled matches of LaLiga 2022-23 are being telecasted live on Pakistan’s first HD Sports channel – A Sports and are simultaneously streamed on the digital platform of ARY Digital Network – ARY ZAP in crystal clear HD quality.

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