Barcelona Revel in La Liga Bliss While Real Madrid Extend Lead by Four Points
In an enthralling weekend of Spanish football, Real Madrid surged further ahead in the La Liga race, leaving Madrid rivals, Atletico, grappling to keep pace. With a dominant display, Madrid triumphed over Valladolid with a thumping 3-0 victory, while Atletico stumbled slightly, managing only a 1-1 draw against Villarreal.
The man of the moment, Kylian Mbappe, dazzled fans and critics alike by netting not one, not two, but three goals—his first hat-trick in a Madrid shirt. Picture it: a crisp pass from the prodigious Jude Bellingham to Mbappe set the opening salvo, right around the thirty-minute mark. The duo worked like clockwork. With the second half underway, Mbappe doubled the celebration after a silky setup from Rodrygo. And just when you might have thought the French speedster was done, Madrid bagged their 10th penalty of the season late in the game, and guess who stepped up? Mbappe, sealing the deal with his third. Any soccer aficionado would gush; this game had the whole works.
Meanwhile, life was a bit more complicated down the road at Atletico Madrid, where gaffer Diego Simeone shuffled his squad against a resilient Villarreal. A moment of calamity when Atletico conceded a penalty allowed Gerard Moreno to put the visiting team ahead, converting coolly from the spot. Enter, Samuel Lino, who restored parity for the home side with a gutsy equalizer from close range. However, Atletico’s efforts to break the deadlock felt like trying to squeeze water from a stone, as they huffed and puffed to no avail against the yellow submarine’s dug-in defenses.
Over in Catalunya, FC Barcelona lit up the pitch with a scintillating performance against an embattled Valencia, closing the gap between them and Atletico to a mere three points. No time wasted, Frenkie de Jong hit the gas pedal early, orchestrating an early goal with a little help from Lamine Yamal. By minute nine, Ferran Torres flicked home Barcelona’s second, and it seemed this game was heading somewhere special. Then, in a delightful dance around Valencia’s keeper, Giorgi Mamardashvili, Raphinha poured a third into an inviting net. It was smooth sailing for Barca, as Fermin Lopez basked in the limelight with a splendid double score, leaving Valencia scrambling for answers at halftime.
If Valencian supporters weren’t biting their nails yet, Hugo Duro offered them a glimmer of hope by finding the net in the 58th minute. But it didn’t take long for blaugrana dreams to squash those hopes. Lewandowski, entering as a super-sub, squeezed in a goal from—get this—a paper-thin angle. Luck wasn’t on Valencia’s side when Cesar Tarrega, in an unfortunate twist, steered the ball into his own net, cementing what may feel like the most unmerciful scoreline Valencia has seen since the early 1930s.
Athletic Club Bilbao, despite wearing their shooting boots, were kept goalless by Leganes in a 0-0 stalemate. Lots of tries, not enough sinking baskets; Athletic peppered the opposition box with attempts—29 shots, 15 corners to boot—but struggled to hit the mark. Meanwhile, Leganes cheekily flirted with victory, striking the woodwork, not once, but twice in their limited offensive forays.
Flipping to Getafe, they executed the classic smash and grab at Real Sociedad. After what seemed like a goalless mire, Christantus Uche broke the deadlock in the 70th minute courtesy of Carles Perez. Fresh from assisting, Perez proved he’s got rockets in them boots, rocketing a volley and doubling the advantage. To seal the deal, the duo switched roles again, and Perez netted a third with a composed finish just minutes from time.
Switching over to Rayo Vallecano, it was a case of super-sub delight as Randy Nketa delivered two late goals to overturn a 1-0 deficit to Girona. Bryan Gil’s lone goal for Girona felt golden until Nketa stepped up from the woodwork, transforming the complexion of the game in a jiffy. A quick one-two punch: the equalizer came after the 77th, then bang, another just three minutes later. Talk about a game-changing performance, am I right?
In a clash riddled with drama, Betis journeyed to Mallorca and snagged a last-gasp winner in the dying embers of injury time. Cedric Bakambu’s header was worth the wait for the traveling fans, especially after Omar Mascarell of Mallorca was given the heave-ho after being shown a red card, which some might say was a bit heavy-handed.
Elsewhere, Espanyol were deadlocked at 1-1 with Sevilla. Marash Kumbulla drew first blood for Espanyol, only to see his efforts balanced by Loric Bade whose curling finish from outside the box was a soothing balm for Sevilla’s ambitions.
In a Friday night thriller, Las Palmas stole a point with the help of a dazzling 98th-minute free kick by Adnan Januzaj, much to the dismay of an Osasuna side yearning for a light at the end of the tunnel. Aimar Oroz had initially put Osasuna on the up and up, but as they say, it ain’t over ’til the whistle blows. What a corker of a weekend!
Report by Axadle