La Liga Matchday 6 Roundup: Real Madrid triumphs in the Madrid derby to stay ahead of Barcelona
Barcelona showed no signs of slowing down as they beat a ten-men Elche 3-0 courtesy of Robert Lewandowski’s brace to stay behind defending champions Real Madrid by two points at the top of the table.
The Los Blancos extended their winning streak to six games with their next victim being Atletico Madrid as they were helpless in a 1-2 defeat. Let’s have a look at what transpired over the weekend in Spanish football before the league takes a 12-day break for International football.
Valladolid 0-1 Cadiz
Cadiz stayed on the back foot for the majority of the contest as they thwarted Valladolid’s attacks one by one throughout the course of the game. Their resilience finally paid dividends in the second minute of added time as Alvaro Negredo poked Joseba Zaldua’s cross to silence the home crowd.
Mallorca 1-0 Almeria
Pablo Maffeo made the most of a wicked deflection as he nodded the ball past the reach of the keeper to score the only goal for Mallorca in the 25th minute. Almeria was unable to breach the home side’s defense and had to unwillingly settle for a loss.
Barcelona 3-0 Elche
Barcelona celebrate after scoring a goal against Elche
Elche suffered a blow in the 14th minute when their captain Gonzalo Verdu saw a red card for pulling Robert Lewandowski’s jersey to deny him a clear-cut goalscoring opportunity. It was one-way traffic from then onwards as Lewandowski trapped a cross from Alejandro Balde and smothered it home in the 34th minute.
Balde was once again in the thick of things as his pass towards Memphis Depay was calmly converted by the Dutchman to put Barcelona two goals upfront in the 41st minute. Pedri found the back of the net before the change of sides but the goal was disallowed as he was deemed to be offside.
However, Lewandowski made the most of a loose ball in the 48th minute to score Barcelona’s third of the day.
Valencia 3-0 Celta Vigo
Samuel Lino made a darting run through the left flank before cutting a cross towards the far end which was connected by Samu Castillejo in the 37th minute to put Valencia’s noses upfront. Marcos Andre latched on a loose ball to slot home the ball past the keeper’s reach to double their lead in the 82nd minute.
Andre Almeida dashed all hopes of a Celta Vigo comeback in the additional minute of the second half when he smashed the ball into the top corner after turning past his marker.
Athletic Club 3-2 Rayo Vallecano
Athletic Club gained the upper hand in a five-goal thriller against Rayo Vallecano. It was the visiting side who drew first blood after Oscar Trejo capitalised on a defensive error to slot the ball home in the fourth minute.
However, Athletic Club responded strongly in the next twenty-five minutes as they squeezed in three goals – one each from Inaki Williams, Ohian Sancet, and Nico Williams. Vallecano did pull one back in the 80th minute through Radamel Falcao but it turned out to be a mere equalizer.
Osasuna 0-2 Getafe
Juan Iglesias provided Getafe with the lead at the half-hour mark after latching into a rebound following Aimar Oroz’s shot. Osasuna’s problems only compounded before the stroke of half-time when Chima Avila was shown a second yellow card in quick succession.
Gaston Alvarez made the most of the man advantage in the 80th minute to put Getafe two goals ahead. However, they too ended the match with ten men as Luis Milla was sent off.
Villarreal 1-1 Sevilla
Sevilla found themselves in the ascendancy early in the game when Isco beat an offside trap and laid it on a platter for Oliver Torres to slot it home in the 8th minute.
Substitute Alex Baena once again rose to the occasion by prodding home Francis Coquelin’s pass to equalize for Villarreal in the 51st minute.
Real Sociedad 2-1 Espanyol
Real Sociedad took the lead through Alexander Sorloth’s strike in the 17th minute. However, the advantage lasted only two minutes later as Edu Exposito equalized for Espanyol.
Sociedad finally had the last laugh when Brais Mendez scored the winner in the 29th minute as no more goals were scored.
Real Betis 2-1 Girona
A brace from Borja Iglesias on either side of half-time completed Real Betis’ comeback win. Girona took the lead in the seventh minute through Arnau Martinez’s strike but it was nullified later.
Atlético Madrid 1-2 Real Madrid
Real Madrid players celebrate after scoring a goal
Real Madrid took the lead in the 18th minute through Rodrygo after the Brazilian latched on to a dinked pass from Aurelian Tchouameni. Vinicius’ strike in the 36th minute hit the crossbar but Fede Valverde reacted just in time to tap it home.
Atletico replied with a goal in the 81st minute when Mario Hermoso deflected the ball into the net with his shoulder off a corner kick but it proved to be a mere consolation. Despite the footballing prowess on display in the Madrid derby, racist chants aimed toward Vinicius and Rodrygo tarnished the image of the game.