LA LIGA: Barca ride luck to sink Sociedad, Real held in Bilbao

SAN SEBASTIAN - Barcelona moved two points clear at the top of La Liga on Saturday after riding their luck to come from behind and win 2-1 at Real Sociedad on Saturday while Real Madrid could only draw 1-1 in a highly entertaining game at Athletic Bilbao.

Champions Barcelona fell behind following a thumping shot from Aritz Elustondo in the 12th minute from a set piece.

They then survived a mini onslaught from the home side in the second half before Luis Suarez levelled in the 63rd with a scrappy goal and Ousmane Dembele gave them a barely deserved lead three minutes later.

The fightback follows Barca's 4-2 win at Anoeta last January and makes them the only team to still have a perfect record in Spain's top flight, where they lead the standings with 12 points, two clear of Real.

Visiting coach Ernesto Valverde decided to start his side's arguably least favourite away trip without Philippe Coutinho and Sergio Busquets ahead of a jammed schedule of six games in 20 days.

That gamble appeared to have backfired when Elustondo smashed home following a knock down from a corner.

Valverde brought on Coutinho and Busquets early in the second half but their presence initially made little difference as Real Sociedad launched three counter attacks in quick succession, with only the presence of German goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen preventing the home side from doubling their lead.

Barely a minute after Ter Stegen had blocked a gaping chance for Juanmi, Uruguayan striker Suarez took advantage of some confusion in the area following a free kick and smashed home from close range to the disbelief of the home supporters.

The Catalans took the lead following another set piece, Dembele sending the ball skidding in after goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli had flapped at a corner and left his net unguarded.

HUGE WIN

"I think you have to see a game like this to see how tough La Liga is," said Suarez.

"Last year we also came from behind to win here and eight or nine years ago we wouldn't win any games here. It's a huge win for our confidence."

Iker Muniain gave Athletic a deserved lead in the 32nd minute in Bilbao by bundling the ball home after Real failed to get back in time to defend a counter attack.

Real were twice denied by Athletic's impressive 21-year-old goalkeeper Unai Simon in the first half but finally beat the youngster when Isco nodded home a cross from Gareth Bale in the 63rd minute as Real improved after bringing on midfield anchor Casemiro at the start of the second half.

Simon made two more outstanding saves to thwart Marco Asensio and Sergio Ramos although Athletic continued to counter, Inaki Williams smashing wide and the Basques being denied a penalty when the ball struck Casemiro on the arm while the Brazilian was on the floor.

The decision enraged Athletic supporters in a hostile atmosphere at San Mames, which was mirrored on the pitch as referee Jose Luis Gonzalez Gonzalez handed out eight yellow cards, six to Athletic players.

"This is a very difficult ground to come to, for the team they have and for how they play. They come looking for you, they press you man-for-man and make life hard for you and if you don't find ways deal with that it's tough," said Real coach Julen Lopetegui.

"That's what happened in the first half but we improved a lot in the second and did enough to win. It was a very intense game, Athletic played their part well and we did our job in the second half."

(Reporting by Richard Martin, editing by Pritha Sarkar)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Under-strength Barca survive Celta fightback to stay unbeaten

Runaway La Liga leaders Barcelona held on to draw 2-2 at Celta Vigo on Tuesday with a much-changed side as they survived having Sergi Roberto sent off late in the second half to preserve their unbeaten league record this season.

Barca lead the standings on 83 points after 33 games, 12 ahead of second-placed Atletico Madrid, who visit Real Sociedad on Thursday, while Real Madrid, a further four points back in third, host Athletic Bilbao on Wednesday.

France forward Ousmane Dembele struck his first goal in the Spanish top flight to give Barca the lead against the run of play in the 36th minute but Celta got a deserved equaliser just before halftime when Jonny Castro struck from close range.

Paco Alcacer restored Barca's lead in the 64th minute but Celta, who had beaten the Catalans 4-3 and 4-1 at home in the previous two seasons, continued to pour forward and caused the visitors' inexperienced defence problems.

Substitute Roberto was given a straight red card in the 71st for halting a surging run from Iago Aspas and the Spain striker levelled in the 82nd minute, bundling the ball in with the help of his arm and scoring his 20th league goal this season.

With the King's Cup final against Sevilla coming up on Saturday, Barca coach Ernesto Valverde made eight changes to the team that beat Valencia at the weekend, leaving out most of his regular starters including talisman Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Gerard Pique and captain Andres Iniesta.

The wholesale changes meant it was the first competitive game in 16 years in which Barca started without a player who had come through their academy and the lack of experienced personnel saw 24-year-old keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen named as captain.

Celta dominated the final part of the game, despite Messi having come on earlier in the second half, but Barca clung on for the draw, staying on course to become the only team to finish a Liga season without losing.

"I wanted to make changes bearing in mind where we have come from and that we have a final coming up," said Barca coach Valverde, who was blamed after the shock exit to AS Roma in the Champions League quarter-finals for not rotating his squad more.

"When you make many changes you are taking a lot of risks but tonight I thought it was the right moment to assume those risks," he said.

The point means Barca can guarantee lifting the title if they win their next games at Deportivo La Coruna and Real Madrid but they could wrap up a 25th Liga crown before then if Atletico Madrid lose their next two against Real Sociedad and Real Betis.

"We don't take this draw as a good thing as we always want to win but we have to accept what we have," Valverde added.

"It was an end-to-end game but just as we were at our best we had the sending off and we had to reshape ourselves. It's another point and now we need two more victories to become champions."

Barca's King's Cup final opponents Sevilla, who are seventh, were held to a 0-0 draw at relegation-threatened Deportivo earlier on Tuesday, while sixth-placed Villarreal beat Leganes 2-1 as they battle for a Europa League qualifying spot.

(Reporting by Richard Martin; editing by Ken Ferris)

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Messi hat-trick ensures Barca pounce on Madrid stumble

MADRID, Spain -- Lionel Messi's hat-trick saw Barcelona move four points clear of Real Madrid at the top of La Liga as Ousmane Dembele marked his debut with an assist in a 5-0 rout of local rivals Espanyol on Saturday.

Earlier, Madrid paid for the absence of the suspended Cristiano Ronaldo and a series of missed chances by Gareth Bale as they were held to a shock 1-1 home draw by newly-promoted Levante.

Barca made no such mistake as for all their early season off-field problems, Ernesto Valverde's men have taken maximum points from their opening three La Liga games.

Messi led the way with a virtuoso performance, but his opener also needed a huge slice of luck as he was wrongly not flagged offside from Ivan Rakitic's through ball before blasting into the top corner.

Barca's second arrived thanks to a counter-attack from an Espanyol corner led by Messi and Luis Suarez before Jordi Alba's low cross was slotted home at the near post by the Argentine.

"It is a privilege to play with the best player in the world," said Suarez.

"Game-by-game he keeps showing that Messi will be around for a long time to come."

Messi put the outcome beyond any doubt by rounding off his hat-trick with another sharp finish from Alba's cut-back.

Dembele has the unenviable task of replacing the departed Neymar and Barca's 105 million-euro man had to wait until 22 minutes from time for his debut as he replaced Gerard Deulofeu to a standing ovation.

He showed why Barca have made the 20-year-old the third most expensive player ever as his pinpoint cross was swept home by Suarez to round off the scoring after Gerard Pique had headed home Barca's fourth.

However, even a fine display didn't dissuade the bad feeling towards Barca's under-fire board after a chaotic summer in the transfer market and splits between the boardroom and the dressing room, with Messi and Andres Iniesta yet to sign extensions to their contracts which expire in 2018.

Suarez's fifth goal was met with chants for president Josep Maria Bartomeu to reign.

- Much-changed Madrid held -

At the Santiago Bernabeu, a much-changed Madrid paid a heavy price for a slow start as they dropped points at home for the second consecutive game.

A Levante long-throw from the right was allowed to bounce inside Madrid's six-yard box before Ivi Lopez spun and fired across Kiko Casilla into the far corner after just 12 minutes.

"We can't be happy with our performance, above all in the first half," said Real boss Zinedine Zidane.

"We don't need to go crazy. We need to have patience and think about the next game, which is just around the corner."

The hosts were dealt another blow midway through the first half as Karim Benzema limped off and with no other natural striker on the bench, Bale was forced to play as an auxiliary centre-forward.

Madrid levelled nine minutes before half-time when Sergio Ramos's towering header was parried by Raul Fernandez, but Lucas Vazquez bundled home the rebound.

Bale then had a huge chance to turn the game around, but was denied by a smart stop from the Levante keeper as he tried to curl the ball home with the outside of his left foot.

Marcelo saw a fierce effort from the edge of the box turned behind by Fernandez, but the Brazilian appeared to kick out at Jefferson Lerma as he hit the ground and was shown a straight red card.

Despite their numerical disadvantage, Madrid still nearly grabbed all three points as Toni Kroos's effort from the edge of the area clipped the outside of the post.

Atletico Madrid also trail Barca by four points as without the suspended Antoine Griezmann they drew a blank in an intense 0-0 draw at Valencia.

Sevilla moved up to second, just two points behind the leaders, as goals from Paulo Henrique Ganso, Wissam Ben Yedder and Nolito secured a 3-0 win over Eibar.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Dortmund stumble against Augsburg, Eintracht win again

BERLIN - Borussia Dortmund missed a bagful of chances to draw 1-1 at home with Augsburg on Tuesday, as they squandered the opportunity to make up ground in the Bundesliga title race heading into the winter break.

South Korean Ji Dong-won beat keeper Roman Weidenfeller at the second attempt in the 33rd minute to put the visitors ahead.

Dortmund, who had hit the post through Mario Goetze in the ninth minute, dominated late in the first half but could not make their pressure count until Ousmane Dembele levelled two minutes after the restart.

The hosts had numerous chances in a one-sided second half with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, the Bundesliga's top scorer, going close half a dozen times.

Dortmund are fourth on 27 points, nine points adrift of leaders Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig, who face each other on Wednesday.

"I think the game tonight reflects our first half of the season," said Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel after Dortmund's third consecutive league draw.

"We are being punished too often. We should be able at some point to keep a clean sheet and win 1-0," Tuchel said. "We will obviously not stop working at it. We need to be consistent in our competitions."

Eintracht Frankfurt moved up to third on 29 after beating 10-man Mainz 05 3-0 with Branimir Hrgota scoring twice as they secured a fourth victory in their last seven league games.

Mario Gomez's winner gave VfL Wolfsburg a 2-1 victory over Borussia Moenchengladbach that left both teams on 16 points and heaped further pressure on Gladbach coach Andre Schubert following their fifth loss in the last seven games.

Hamburg SV climbed into the relegation playoff spot after edging past Schalke 04 2-1.

(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann; Editing by Toby Davis)

source: news.abs-cbn.com