This weekend in La Liga saw plenty of wild action, crazy decisions, VAR and one of the worst pitches of all time. Even better, the big boys had it tough this weekend. Atletico Madrid and Barcelona each eeked out a 1-0 win on Saturday against Rayo Vallecano and Real Valladolid, Valencia went 2-0 down at Espanyol and could not come back and Real Madrid closed out the weekend by smacking Girona 4-1.
La Liga Week Two: Disaster Pitch, Atletico Grinding, Real Dominating
The Highlights
Saturday
We have to start with Barcelona, who travelled to Real Valladolid to play on one of the worst surfaces ever seen. The pitch had been laid during this week, hardly time to take root. And man it came up in chunks, affecting passes and players all over the field. There is one photo of Jordi Alba picking up a large piece of turf that had been dislodged, and replacing it in its spot.
As for the actual game, Valladolid held Barca well, though it felt like the field did more defending than they did. Barcelona’s only goal came from a long cross by Luis Suarez, headed down by Sergi Roberto, right to Ousmane Dembele who hammered it home. Valladolid thought they got the equalizer in the 93rd minute but it was ruled out after VAR correctly concluded that it was offside.
Atletico Madrid also had trouble this weekend but their’s had nothing to do with the field, at least. As they always seem to do, Atletico were forced to grind and grind for a result, which they got thanks to Antoine Griezmann. The World Cup winner popped up at the back post after a flicked on corner to give Atletico their deserved 1-0 win.
Sunday
Now Valencia were surprising. They went to visit Espanyol in Catalonia thinking they could get all three points. They were sorely mistaken thanks to two great goals from Esteban Granero and Leo Baptistao. They gave Espanyol a crucial three points against a Champions League challenger.
Sunday night saw simultaneous late kick-offs between Girona vs Real Madrid and Sevilla vs Villareal. Girona were able to take the lead against Madrid through a lovely finish from Borja Garcia. But that was the last time they had any chance; from there, Madrid dominated and went on in the second half to rout Girona 4-1. Meanwhile, in the south of Spain, Sevilla and Villareal were playing out a classic boring 0-0 draw.
Star of the Weekend
When Cristiano Ronaldo decided to leave Real Madrid, many expected that Gareth Bale would be the one most responsible for replacing his production. Well so far in this new La Liga season, Bale has been up to the task. After scoring last weekend against Getafe, Bale absolutely tore up Girona on Sunday. A brilliantly-finished goal coupled with a lovely assist to Karim Benzema topped off a very nice night for Madrid and Bale.
Surprise of the Weekend
Obviously, that has to be Espanyol’s 2-0 win at home against Valencia. Marcelino’s men will have to go back to the drawing board. They showed very little creativity getting towards the final third. They are hoping to make another signing before the Spanish window closes. There is talk of bringing Goncalo Guedes back from Paris Saint-Germain and they should be more inclined to do so now. One point from the opening two in a UCL season is not going to cut it and they need reinforcements to compete on both fronts.
Still to Come
Monday night features two games in La Liga as Levante host Celta Vigo, followed by Huesca making their inaugural trip to San Mames to take on Athletic Bilbao. Bilbao, after making loads of money on Kepa Arrizabalaga’s move to Chelsea, have not reinvested. But they were still able to dispatch Leganes at home last Monday and should do the same this Monday. This result, should it go poorly, could force them to go after one of their neighbour’s best players, since they can only sign Basque players.
Next Weekend
Week 3 in La Liga will be the first derby weekend this season. Friday night features a Basque derby of Eibar hosting Real Sociedad. A mini Madrid derby hits you on Saturday when Leganes travel to Real Madrid. But the big one is saved for Sunday with the Seville derby, Real Betis hosting Sevilla.
This rivalry is not that famous around the world, but as far as intense rivalries go, there are few better in Spain. Real Betis are a team with a massive following, over 50,000 season ticket holders, and a persecution complex with Sevilla. Sevilla are generally the better side and over the last ten years have owned Betis to an extent. But that won’t stop the Benito Villamarin from rocking on Sunday night with 60,000+ wearing green and white.
Main Photo
