Already with the title in the bag, Real Madrid ended the season with a 5 - 2 win over Levante before lifting the trophy to spark wild celebrations at the Santiago Bernabeu.

At the other end of the table, the scrap to stay in the top flight went right down to the wire and indeed, the final few minutes of the season. All the news from the last round in La Liga come from our Spanish correspondent Felipe Bazon.

Murcia 3 vs. 5 Barcelona

In their last game with Rijkaard in command, Barcelona ended the season with dignity and a big win at relegated side Murcia. The home side took a shock lead but Barça soon equalized through Samuel Eto’o and took the lead through Henry, after a misunderstanding between Murcia’s defenders. However it was Giovani dos Santos who was the star of the show, completing his first ever first hat trick for Barcelona as he rattled in goals 3, 4 and 5. Murcia grabbed a consolation at the end but Barca were not to be denied.

Mallorca 3 vs. 2 Zaragoza

Despite their array of talent and big name players, Zaragoza were relegated after a see-saw match away to Mallorca. Needing a point to stay up, Zaragoza fell behind as La Liga’s top scorer Guiza netted his 27th of the season to put the home team in front. Zaragoza were back in it though when Ricardo Oliveira headed home a second half equaliser. But Webó also with a header gave the lead back to Mallorca and Castro touched home the third as the 90 minutes ticked away. There was still time for Oliveira to notch a second but the team that no-one expected to go down hadn’t done enough and finished the season third from bottom.

Recreativo 1 vs. 1 Valladolid

The draw was good enough for both teams, as they secured their top flight status for next season. Llorente got in on the end of a cross from Pedro Lopéz to put Valladolid in front and it looked as if they had all three points wrapped up until Javi Guerrero equalised for Recreativo in the 3rd minute of injury time to keep Recreativo in La Liga for at least another season.

Racing 1 vs. 0 Osasuna

Racing won by the minimum count and secured a place in next season’s Uefa Cup while Osasuna avoided the drop thanks to Zaragoza’s defeat at Mallorca. Iván Bolado scored the only goal of the match, slotting home a pass from Tchité to ensure a European jaunt for the home team in 2008 / 2009.

Getafe 1 vs. 1 Betis

With nothing at stake in this final match between Getafe and Betis, both teams shared the points with a fair 1-1 draw. Getafe grabbed an early lead through Manu who got behind Betis’ defence and rounded the keeper. They had a chance to double the lead but Cortés failed from the penalty spot. Betis’ equaliser only came in the second half through Nano who deflected in a corner from the right.

Valencia 3 vs. 1 Atlético Madrid

Valencia commanded the whole match and played probably what was their best game at home this season. David Villa, a transfer target for a number of English Premier League clubs, was the man of the match as he forced an own goal and scored the other two. Kun Aguero who has also been linked with a move to England, managed to get one back for Atlético Madrid who finished 4th in the table and so took the final Champions League spot.

Real Madrid 5 vs. 2 Levante

Levante’s players called off a possible strike although they were powerless to stop the champions finishing on a high. With two from Van Nistelroy, two from Sergio Ramos and a brilliant free kick from Sneijder, Real Madrid sealed the 07-08 season in style and lifted the league trophy for the 31st time.

Sevilla 4 vs. 1 Athletic Bilbao

In a meaningless match, Atheltic grabbed an early lead through Anduriz from the penalty spot but before the break Fred Kanouté equalised for Sevilla. Keita hammered in a 25 yard free kick to give the home side the lead before Kanouté touched home the third and Jes ús Navas number four.

Espanyol 1 vs. 3 Almería

This was the 10th consecutive match that Espanyol failed to register a win, a poor streak matched only by relegated Murcia. The scoring started just before half time when Felipe Mello’s strike deflected off Zabaleta to give Almería the lead. Crusat doubled the lead in the second half but Luis Garcia gave the home side hope just four minutes later. Espanyol pressed for an equaliser but their season was to end with yet another defeat as a late goal from Paunovic sealed Almería’s victory.

Deportivo 0 vs. 2 Villareal

The best two teams of the second half of the season played out an entertaining game which went the way of the visitors. Matias Fernandez and Guille Franco’s goals were the difference between the two teams and cemented runners up spot for “El Submarino” who will go straight in to the main draw for the Champions League next season. Meanwhile Depor will be delighted to have finished in 9th spot after being at the wrong end of the table for the first 5 months of the season.

La Liga’s 07-08 Final Standings

1 R. Madrid 85
2 Villarreal 77
3 Barcelona 67
4 Atlético 64
5 Sevilla 64
6 Racing 60
7 Mallorca 59
8 Almería 52
9 Deportivo 52
10 Valencia 51
11 Athletic 50
12 Espanyol 48
13 Betis 47
14 Getafe 47
15 Valladolid 45
16 Recreativo 44
17 Osasuna 43
18 Zaragoza 42
19 Murcia 30
20 Levante 26

La Liga Weekly Round Up - 12th may

We head in to the final round of La Liga with almost everything settled into place, there is only one more team to be relegated, but five teams will fight for survival in the final round.

Atlético Madrid are back in the Champions League after 11 years and can steal Barcelona’s third place if “los culés” fail to win their last match. Two things to be highlighted in this round, Barcelona’s defeat at home to Mallorca and David Villa’s hat trick for Valencia against Murcia. All the action reported by Felipe Bazon.

Villareal 2 vs. 0 Espanyol

Another great victory for Villareal, the “Yellow Submarine” capitalising twice in the first half.

Javi Venta got on the end of a Capdvilla’s cross to put Villareal one up. Minutes later Nihat dribbled through Espanyol’s defence to set up Robert Pires and the Frenchman hammered home the second. In the second half Villareal played a possession game to secure the three points.

Osasuna 2 vs. 1 Murcia

Playing at home and against relegated side Murcia, Osasuna just managed to hold on to the three very important points to maintain their La Liga status for next season.

Osasuna grabbed an early lead through Dady in the first minute, the early goal helped Osasuna to take control of the match. Osasuna’s second came in the second half, Juanfran volleyed home a cross from Hugo Viana, on loane from Valencia, to secure Osasuna’s victory. In stoppage time Murcia managed to get one back through Abel, but it was too little, too late.

Levante 1 vs. 5 Valencia

Valencia secured their La Liga status for next season after thrashing relegated side Levante. David Villa, the Spanish international who is connected with a host of English clubs scored a hat trick and assisted the other two goals from Mata and Angulo. Levante managed to score a consolation goal through Serrano.

Almería 0 vs. 2 Recreativo

Recreativo won an important match away from home. In need of the three points to assist their future in La Liga, Recreativo started the match with a very offensive formation and soon capitalised. The first was scored byJes ús Vázquez and before the break Sinama doubled the lead. With no signs of a reaction from Almería. Recreactio slowed the pace and played a possession game to take home the three points.

Zaragoza 2 vs. 2 Real Madrid

Zaragoza’s nightmare will go in to the final round after this draw at home against Champions Real Madrid.

Thing were looking good when Zaragoza went one up through Oliveira, but Zaragoza’s happiness didn’t last very long Van Nistelroy equalised for Real Madrid and in the second half Robinho scored his first and the second for “los blancos”. Things were looking bad and the crowd were losing hope, but Sergio Fernandéz appeared to save the day with five minutes to go. After a one on one between Sergio Garcia and Dudek the Polish goal keeper denied Sergio’s opportunity but the other Sergio this time Fernandez was there to touch home the equaliser.

Valladolid 0 vs. 0 Getafe

Sharing the points wasn’t fair for Valladolid, the home side played a far better game than Getafe but it wasn’t the night for Valladolid’s strikers, missing chance after chance, resulting in a nil nil draw. But the draw was good enough for both sides to secure their La Liga status for next season.

Betis 0 vs. 2 Sevilla

Sevilla commanded this match from start to finish and won the “Andaluz” derby.

Luis Fabiano grabbed the lead for Sevilla in the first half and Fazio double the lead in the second half. But Sevilla’s attention was turned to what was happening in Madrid between Atlétio Madrid and Deportivo La Coruña. If the capital’s team lost, Sevilla would still had a chance to qualify for the Champions League next season.

Barcelona 2 vs. 3 Mallorca

In his last game at the Camp Nou, Barcelona’s coach Rijkaard couldn’t have wished for a worse game than this one. After going two nil up, Mallorca managed to turn things around and win the match in the third minute of extra time.

Thierry Henry scored the first for Barça with the only action worth commenting about in the first half. Eto’o doubled the lead for Barcelona in the second half, but then Mallorca reacted. Boja Valero scored the first, Webó the second and when both teams seemed to be happy with the draw, up sprung the archer, Guiza. He controlled a pass pinpointed to him in the penalty spot, went past goal keeper Pinto with style and touched home the winner. With this home defeat Barcelona will have to beat Murcia in the final round to keep hold of third place.

Atlético Madrid 1 vs. 0 Deportivo La Coruña

After 11 long years Atlético Madrid are back in the elite of European football after beating “Depor” at home. Former Manchester United striker Diego Fórlan scored the only goal of the match just before the break. He hammered in a cross from Maxi Rodriguez to bring joy to the stands. But as always with Atlético, they had to suffer to accomplish something. They had to fight till the last minute to secure their victory and the European top flight for next season.

Athletic Bilbao 0 vs. 0 Racing Santander

A nil nil draw between Athletic Bilbao and Racing. Racing needed total points to go in to the final round only needing a point to secure their UEFA cup seat for next season. Now they will have to beat Osasuna. The good news is that Racing play at home, the bad news is they won’t have an easy game, as Osasuna also needs the three points to secure their La Liga status for next season.

La Liga Standings

1 R. Madrid 82
2 Villarreal 74
3 Barcelona 64
4 Atlético 64
5 Sevilla 61
6 Racing 57
7 Mallorca 56
8 Deportivo 52
9 Athletic 50
10 Almería 49
11 Espanyol 48
12 Valencia 48
13 Getafe 46
14 Betis 46
15 Valladolid 44
16 Recreativo 43
17 Osasuna 43
18 Zaragoza 42
19 Murcia 30
20 Levante 26

La Liga Weekly Round up - 5th of May

Real Madrid have been crowned La Liga Champions for the 31st time. Murcia lost to Racing Santander and are the second team to be relegated this season, Barcelona humiliated Valencia with a six nil victory.

Felipe Bazon gives you all the action of the weekends La Liga…..

Zaragoza 1-0 Deportivo

Playing at home Zaragoza were in command the whole match, needing the three points to move out of the relegation zone. “Los maños” created a lot of opportunities to score but strikers Diego Milito and Ricardo Oliveira failed to capitalise. The match was heading towards the end, the crowed was losing faith, it was like a supernatural force was stopping Zaragoza from scoring, but amongst those that still had faith, it was Zaragoza’s defender Ayala who touched home a nice pass from Sergio Garcia to give the victory and at least for this round, move Zaragoza away from the death zone.

Atlético Madrid 3-0 Recreativo

The past few weeks haven’t been so good for Atlético Madrid, and the supporters were starting to have doubts about whether they would manage to secure the Champions League seat for next season, but what better place to regain confidence than at home. With the new Spanish wonder kid Nacho Camacho in the starting eleven Atlético grabbed the three points and the confidence to secure the European top flight for next season. Camacho opened up the scores and became the youngest player to score a goal in La Liga for Atlético. In the second half it was “El Kun Aguero” another young promise from Argentina who doubled the scores and Camacho with his second and third for Atlético Madrid sealed the victory for the home side. The result is bad news for Recreativo who are back in the relegation zone.

Sevilla 2-0 Valladolid

After failing to score recently, Sevilla finally found the route to goal again, but it wasn’t through La Liga’s “Pichichi” (name of a trophy given to the top scorer in La Liga) Luis Fabiano, nor Fred Kanouté, it was midfielder Renato who scored both goals for Sevilla. With the three points, Sevilla can still dream of a place in the top European competition next season as they are only three points behind Atlético Madrid and with three games to go, a lot can change.

Racing Santander 3-2 Murcia

A spectacular comeback from Racing, which might secure a place in Europe next season. Meanwhile Murcia are relegated after failing to hold on to the lead and the three points. The first ten minutes Racing were in control and putting pressure on Murcia’s defence, but they failed to capitalise, whilst Murcia took the opportunities they had. Peña put the ball in the box and Aquino headed the first one home. After a defensive error from Racing’s defence Ayoze, he also hammered in the second. The second goal made Racing wake up and start to put pressure on the Murcia defence and soon all that effort turned into Racing’s first goal. Munitis struck, De Coz tried to block, but the shot deflected the ball in. Racing’s equaliser came in the second half through Jorge Lopez and the winner by captain Munitis, who let fly a left footer to beat Murcia’s keeper Carini and seal the victory for Racing Satander.

Athletic Bilbao 1-2 Mallorca

A lot of action in this one. Spanish international Guiza opened up the scores for the visitors Mallorca and Llorente equalised for Athletic Bilbao and that was the rhythm through out the match, both teams with an offensive formation and a solid back four, they went into half time level. But the “archer” and new La Liga “Pichichi” Guiza, broke the deadlock for the second time to give the victory to Mallorca.

Levante 1-1 Espanyol

Playing against relegated side Levante, Espanyol took another step back into the fight for a place in Europe next season. With a goalless first half the home side took the lead through Juamma, but when Levante thought they had the three points, the ref assigned a penalty for Espanyol, Luis Garcia took it to equalise and share the points.

Villareal 2-0 Getafe

An unfair result for Getafe, playing away from “los azulones”. They played better than Villareal, but football is not always about playing well, it’s the goals that count and that was what Villareal got. After a nice one two between Rossi and Cazorla that set up Nihat, the Turk hammered the first in. Six minutes later the Turk doubled the count after a nice assist from Pires. The second goal knocked out Getafe, who could not react in the second half and the game ended in a 2 nil victory for Villareal.

Almería 1-1 Betis

Playing away, Betis had a more defensive system than Almería, so the visitors sat back and played on the counter attack. It took some time, but Betis’ tactics paid off just before the half time whistle. After failing on two previous occasions Odonkor did not miss the third and Betis went one up. With only two minutes into the second half Almería found an equaliser through Pulido and the teams had to share the points.

Barcelona 6-0 Valencia

A real goal fest for Barcelona, a little late though. Against a sleeping Valencia, Barça scored three of the six goals in the first 15 minutes. Messi was fouled outside the box but the ref thought that the Argentinian was inside the box and assigned a penalty for Barcelona. Messi took it and scored the first for Barça, three minutes later Xavi scored the second, French hitman Henry scored third and fourth and Bojan the last two.

Osasuna 1-2 Real Madrid

Osasuna needed the three points to keep fighting to maintain their La Liga status for next season, on the other hand Real Madrid needed to win to be crowned Champions. But Osasuna were determined to delay the party for another week. With both teams needing the points for different reasons things were pretty hot from the beginning, but both teams went to the break without scoring.

In the first minute of the second half Real Madrid were a man down, Canavaro picked up a second yellow card and was sent off. Things were not looking good for “los blancos” and they got even worse when Puñal gave the lead to Osasuna after converting from the penalty spot with only 7 minutes to go. But once again Robben and Higuaín saved the day, Higuaín served a ball inside the box and Robben headed home the equaliser four minutes later. Then spectacularly, Higuaín scored a second to give the 31st La Liga title to Real Madrid.

Standings

1-Real Madrid 35-78
2-Villarreal 35-68
3-Barcelona 35-64
4-Atletico Madrid 35-58
5-Racing Santander 35-56
6-Sevilla 35-55
7-Real Mallorca 35-50
8-Deportivo La Coruna 35-49
9-Almeria 35-49
10-Espanyol 35-48

Despite recording another win, Real Madrid will have to wait at least one more round before possibly taking the league title. Meanwhile, at the other end of the table, Levante were the first team to be relegated after losing to Recreativo. Keep reading to get all the action from this weekend in La Liga from Felipe Bazon.

Deportivo La Coruña 2 vs. 0 Barcelona

Deportivo won their 5th consecutive league match, playing at home against a Barcelona side that seemed more intent on concentrating on this week’s Champions League semi final 2nd leg away to Manchester United. Frank Rijkaard rested Iniesta, Eto’o, goalkeeper Victor Valdez, Messi and Xavi who had picked up his third yellow card in the last match. Without their top players, Barcelona were an easy target for Deportivo who went ahead in the second half through Juan Rodríguez after poor play by the visitors replacement goal keeper Pinto. Barcelona’s lack of options meant they rarely threatened and the home team wrapped up their win when Wilhelmsson guided a free kick to the far post for Pablo Amo to head home.

Murcia 0 vs. 0 Sevilla

In the only goal less game of this round, both teams showed a lack of determination in what was a poor encounter. Murcia needed to secure three points to aid their fight against relegation whilst Sevilla were looking for a maximum haul to garner a European spot next season. However, not even La Liga top scorer Luis Fabiano was able to break the deadlock and both teams had to share the points.

Mallorca 3 vs. 1 Racing Santander

Playing at home Mallorca were superior to Racing even though all the goal action happened late in the match. Nunes slotted home a cross from Boja Valero to give Mallorca the lead with three minutes played of second half and Mallorca’s second came 8 minutes from time after a misjudged pass back from Racing’s midfielder Colsa was converted by Tejo. Racing got one back through Duscher from the penalty spot but Mallorca had the “archer” Guiza who hammered in the third in the last minute of play to seal Mallorca’s victory.

Valencia 3 vs. 0 Osasuna

Finally a good home performance from Valencia who were helped when Osasuna’s goalkeeper Ricardo was dismissed via a straight red card. David Villa fired home the resulting penalty with precision to give Valencia the lead. Being a man down, Osasuna were there for the taking and Mata hammered home a left footer to put Valencia two up before Villa fed a nice ball through to Joaquín who touched home the third and final goal of the match.

Espanyol 1 vs. 1 Zaragoza

Both teams needed all the points for different reasons, Espanyol for a place in Europe next season and Zaragoza to move out of relegation zone. After a goalless first half, Riera got the opener, the Espanyol striker was attempting a cross but the curling ball deceived everybody and ended up in the back of the net. 5 minutes from time the referee awarded a penalty to Zaragoza and Ricardo Oliveira made no mistake from the spot to level the match although a point wasn’t good enough to move them out of the relegation places. .

Recreativo 2 vs. 0 Levante

Recreativo showed no mercy against Levante, with both teams wanting maximum points to maintain their La Liga status for next season. Recreativo started the match with a more offensive formation than Levante and soon capitalized through Martin; the Turk slotting home a nice pass from Sinama Pongolle. Before the break Camuñas double Recreativo’s advantage and with Levante not able to respond in the second period, they became the first team to be relegated from the top flight this season.

Valladolid 1 vs. 0 Almería

Like other games this round, one side needed points for survival, the other for possible European exploits next season. But if the crowd were expecting to see an exciting match as a result, they were disappointed. The only goal of the game was scored in the second minute of stoppage time when Almería’s goalkeeper Diego Alves was caught out of position and could only watch as a speculative shot nestled in the top corner. Three very important points for Valladolid who are now four clear from the relegation zone.

Getafe 1 vs. 1 Atlético Madrid

A poor start from the visitors who were soon behind to Getafe with Cortes supplying the ball for Albín to volley home the opener. But with five minutes of the first half remaining Atlético found their equalizer through Kun Aguero after a mix up between defender Belenguer and goalkeeper Pato Abbondanziere. Getafe had a chance to take all the points but Atlético’s goalkeeper Léo Franco saved De la Red’s penalty. The draw was good enough for Atlético Madrid to hold on to their Champions League spot.

Betis 0 vs. 1 Villarreal

Villarreal spoiled Real Madrid’s potential party this weekend, and made ‘los blancos’ wait at least another round to celebrate the title. Villarreal won with a spectacular goal from Spanish International Marcos Senna, the Brazilian born midfielder saw Betis goalkeeper out of position and fired home from the half way line a la David Beckham for Manchester United against Wimbledon in 1995/96. Betis failed with numerous chances to change the game as Villarreal walked away with the three points.

Real Madrid 3 vs. 0 Atheltic Bilbao

Real Madrid remain on course for their 31st league title and did so in some style. Real were in command of the game from start to finish. Saviola grabbed the opener after nice work from Sneijder, Ra úl and Robinho. At the other end, despite their dominance, Casillas secured a clean sheet with a couple of great saves, one from the penalty spot. In the second half coach Schuster replaced captain Ra úl and Robinho for Higuaín and Robben and the fresh pair soon capitalized, Higuaín’s pass found the Dutch man inside the box and Robben hammered home the second for the champions elect and two minutes later it was Higuaín’s turn to score, collecting a pass inside box and slotting home his second goal in two games.

Real Madrid only need a victory next Sunday to win their 31st La Liga title after their victory at Satander this weekend. “los blancos” are 10 points clear at the top with only five games left. Barça failed to score at home and ended up in a goalless draw with Espanyol but the worst performance at home in La Liga this weekend goes to Sevilla. Report by Felipe Bazon

Barcelona 0 - 0 Espanyol

In the Catalonian derby once again Barcelona dropped points at home and for the first time this season they failed to score at the Camp Nou as the game ended in a goalless draw. Even when Messi and Iniesta came on in the second half, making Barça a more offensive team, “los culés” failed to score, the Argie star as if he has recovered from his injury and is ready for his clash against C. Ronaldo in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final, but he wasn’t able to help his team pick up the three points. Barcelona’s boss Frank Rijkaard insists that his team still has chances of wining La Liga……

Atlético Madrid 1 - 3 R. Betis

Atlético Madrid allowed Betis to win three golden points that would have secured their Champions League spot for next season, on the other hand the three points for Betis secured their top flight status for next season, the relegation ghost will not haunt them anymore this season. Juande fired the visitors in front after Atlético’s goalkeeper Leo Franco rebounded a strike from José Mari, Juande was there to send the first one home. Kun Aguero equalised with a flyer from outside the box. But in the second half Betis wrapped up points with two more goals, one from Xisco and the other one from Capi.

Real Zaragoza 3 - 0 Recreativo

In a relegation zone battle, Zaragoza were far superior over Recreativo and won the match without too much effort. With the victory Zaragoza are equal on points with Recreativo, but have a better goal differential which see’s them move out of the relegation zone. This was a one sided game, Zaragoza were in command the whole match. Sergio García opened up the scores just minutes into the game, Brazilian striker Ricardo Oliveira scored the second before half time. In the second half Recreativo showed no signs of a reaction and with 25 minutes to go Ricardo Oliveira scored his second of the night and the third for Zaragoza to seal the victory.

Sevilla 1 - 4 Almería

Sevilla lost another chance to catch up on Atlético Madrid and try to steal the last Champions League spot for next season, and they could now lose their UEFA Cup spot to Almería if they fail to win their next matches. Playing at home, Sevilla were far superior in the first 15 minutes, but things completely changed when captain and Brazilian international Dani Alves headed in his own goal to give the lead to Almería. Before the break, Negredo failed to score the second for Almería when his penalty exploded in Palop’s left post and went out. With two minutes into the second half Negredo redeemed himself, scoring his first and the second for Almería. Ortiz scored the third and then Negredo again scored his third and fourth for Almería and killed any chances Sevilla had to get back into the game. Kanoute missed a penalty but managed to score the consolation goal for Sevilla after nice action from Jesus Navas.

Murcia 1 - 4 Mallorca

Mallorca dominated the whole match, needing the victory to secure their La Liga status for next season. Mallorca started the match with an attacking formation which was soon capitalized by Spanish international Guiza and ten minutes later Mallorca found their second with Arango. Before the break Murcia showed no signs of a reaction and Mallorca continued their domination. When the second half started Murcia had no chances of starting a come back, Guiza scored his second and third for Mallorca in the first 60 seconds, it was Guiza who scored the fourth for Mallorca completing his hat trick, Murcia’s consolation goal came through Baiano with two minutes to go.

Osasuna 0 - 1 Deportivo la Coruña

Deportivo won their fourth consecutive league match, even though they did not deserve to win this one. Osasuna were in command from start to finish but could not capitalise on their chances. With a goalless first half both teams returned with more determination but nothing changed from the first half, Osasuna were in command but it was Deportivo who took the lead and the three points. The ref assigned a controversial penalty for “Depor” materialised by Sergio. Deportivo with the three points move up to 8th place and Osasuna are only three points from the relegation zone.

Levante 3 - 1 Getafe

Levante won an easy match against Getafe, “los azulones” were still feeling the effects of the past weeks, when they were knocked out of the UEFA and the defeat in the final of the Copa Del Rey to Valencia. Levante scored two late goals in the first half with Juamma and Berson. In the second half Pedro León went pass Belenguer and striked home the third for Levante, the third goal sealed the victory for the bottom side. Getafe got one back through De La Red from the penalty spot.

Villareal 2 - 0 Valladolid

Villareal won this match with authority. Valladolid started the match with a more attacking formation than Villareal, but it was the home side that scored first through Nihat. He scored a real cracker, the Turk received a deep pass from Cazorla dribbled past Alexis Suaréz and hammered into the top corner. In the second half Villareal sealed the victory and the second place in La Liga with an early goal, this time it was Nihat who served Cazorla inside the box and he hammered home the second. Villareal are now second taking Barça’s second place and Valladolid are just two points away from the relegation zone.

Racing Santander 0 - 2 Real Madrid

Real Madrid players celebrated this victory as if they had already won the league, los blancos are now ten points clear at the top with only five games to be played. Real Madrid went one up in the 13th minute of the first half, Robinho crossed in from the left and Ra úl deflected home the first. Madrid’s lead was secured by their back four S. Ramos, Pepe, Cannavaro and Heinze who were in top form and denied any opportunity created by Racing and with a late goal from Higuaín, Real Madrid wrapped up the three points and possibly the league.

Athletic Bilbao 5 - 1 Valencia

There is nothing left from the Valencia that won the Copa Del Rey Final last Wednesday. “Los che” were humiliated at Bilbao by 5 goals to 1. Albiol started the count for the Bascs scoring in his own goal, that was all the action in the first half. The second half was a one sided game with two from Llorente one from Iraola and one from Aduriz. Athletic sent Valencia home with a defeat that they will not forget for a long time, and on top of all that Valencia are now only two points from the relegation zone with one four matches to be played. Los che better play like they played in midweek against Getafe in the cup final otherwise the humiliation will be bigger. Athletic Bilbao with the three points secure their La Liga status for next season.

The Standings

1 Real Madrid 72 pts 33 played

2 Villarreal 62 pts 33 played

3 Barcelona 61 pts 33 played

4 Atletico Madrid 54 pts 33 played

5 Racing Santander 53 pts 33 played

6 Sevilla 51 pts 33 played

La Liga is in the final run in and things are starting to take shape. Certainly at the top of the table as Real Madrid now hold a nine point advantage following their win against Murcia. Felipe Bazon has all the details.

Valencia 1 vs 2 Racing

Valencia lost their third consecutive league game and with the final of “Copa del Rey” just around the corner, it wasn’t exactly a confidence builder. Racing confirmed their status of ‘good on the road’ and dominated the first half although they had to wait until the second period to take the lead through Colsa. However Valencia were level just four minutes later as Spanish international David Villa equalized from the penalty spot. The goal spurred the home side on and their performance improved, however they were caught on the break and Tchité nicked the winner. Not for the first time this season, Valencia were booed off the pitch by their frustrated supporters.

Recreativo 2 vs 2 Barcelona

It looks like Barcelona have thrown the towel in La Liga as they are now nine points behind the leaders Real Madrid. It started well for the visitors however and they were one up within 60 seconds through Samuel Eto’o. Recreativo found an equalizer with a little help from an eagle eyed linesman. A header from Ruben was ’saved’ by Victor Valdez but the official adjudged the ball had crossed the line and awarded the goal. As in the first half, it only took a minute of play for Barca to restore their advantage with Eto’o again the man on target. But his efforts were matched by Ruben who grabbed his second of the game for a share of the points.

Getafe 0 vs 0 Zaragoza

The only goal less draw in this round in La Liga which disappointed Getafe who deserved more after dominating the whole game. The home team created numerous chances and even contrived to miss an open goal as they failed to score for the fourth consecutive league game. Despite taking a point, Zaragzoza are still in the relegation zone three points behind Recreativo.

Mallorca 2 vs 3 Sevilla

Sevilla won an important three points to keep their European dream alive for next season. They went one up through midfielder Renato but before their celebrations had a chance to subside, Spanish international Guiza equalized for Mallorca. In the second half Kanouté came on for Luis Fabiano giving the visitors a further attacking option which they exploited to great affect as Kanouté got in on the end of a Dani Alves cross to give the them the lead. Ten minutes later a long range effort from Dani Alves sealed the victory. Mallorca got one back through Webó but it was too little, too late.

Espanyol 0 vs 1 Osasuna

With Espanyol looking to qualify for Europe and Osasuna desperately requiring points to move away from the relegation zone, this was a game of huge importance. And it was Osasuna who bossed the game from start to finish to quite deservedly take all 3 points. Astudillo scored the only goal of the match on the half hour mark in what was a game devoid of too much incisive attacking action.

Deportivo La Coruña 3 vs 0 Athletic Bilbao

Deportivo had little problem in winning this one. With their defence holding strong, they were soon a goal to the good after a header from Coloccini. With out many offensive options and a shaky looking back four, the visitors became an easy target for a well focused Deportivo. Their second goal came from the penalty spot, converted by Sergio and ten minutes from time, Filipe rounded the keeper with ease to slot home number three. With the victory Deportivo moved nine points clear from the relegation zone and now have the same number of points as Athletic Bilbao.

Betis 0 vs 1 Levante

Levante seem determined to go back to the second division with pride. After a relatively quiet first half Levante scored in the first minute of the second half through Pedro Léon. Betis will have to wait a few more games to secure their La Liga status for next season.

Valladolid 1 vs 1 Atlético Madrid

Atlético Madrid and Valladolid created little in the first period which was poor to say the least. However, Atlético Madrid were more focussed in the second half and went one up through Maxi Rodriguez. The visitors failed to press home their advantage, and in so doing secure a Champions League spot for next season, and they were made to pay as Valladolid hit back with a late goal to take a share of the spoils.

Real Madrid 1 vs 0 Murcia

Real Madrid weren’t at their best in front of their home fans and were down to 10 men as early as the 19th minute after Torres was dismissed after a crude tackle from behind on Aquino. However, Los Blancos were good enough to score the only goal of the game, a second half effort from Sneijder who reacted well in the box to plant an unstoppable shot in to the top right hand corner. With just six games left, Real Madrid are close to securing the title as they now have a nine point lead at the top.

Almería 1 vs 0 Villareal

Villareal played almost the entire game with ten men after losing goal keeper Diego López to a red card after a foul on Crusat. However the resulting penalty was skied over the bar by Negredo who didn’t have the best of games. Being a man down, Villareal’s coach Pellegrini rearranged their defensive format and they seemed well up for the job, as they continued to frustrate the home team. However, it was only a matter of time and a cross from the right to the far post found Acasiete who touched home the one and only goal of the match.

La Liga’s top 10

1 R. Madrid 69
2 Barcelona 60
3 Villarreal 59
4 Atlético 54
5 Racing 53
6 Sevilla 51
7 Almería 45
8 Espanyol 45
9 Deportivo 43
10 Athletic 43

None of the top sides in La Liga won this weekend however their positions remain unchanged. Villareal lost, Real Madrid drew with a little help from the ref and his assistants and Barça dropped points again at home. Top performers of the weekend were Atlético Madrid who hit six against Almería.

Once again, Felipe Bazon has all the details.

Mallorca 1 vs 1 Real Madrid

Errors from the ref and Mallorca’s own mistakes helped Real Madrid walk away with a point from this match. Mallorca dominated the game but it was Los Blanco who scored first just before the half time whistle through Sneijder. The home side continued to play well in the second half and Madrid created little in front of goal. Mallorca deservedly got back on level terms as Bojan Valero scored a brilliant goal, receiving a pass inside the box and beating Iker Casillas.

Osasuna 0 vs 1 Recreativo

A perfect strike from outside the box from Sinama Pongolle decided this thrilling match. It was harsh on Osasuna who failed to convert numerous chances as well as having what looked to be a perfectly legitimate goal disallowed by the officials. With the three points Recreativo move away from the relegation zone and are now only a point behind Osasuna.

Sevilla 2 vs 0 Villlreal

This was one of Sevilla’s best performances of the season. The home team were in control from the off with Keita and Renato running midfield and it wasn’t long before they were ahead. From his own half Dani Alves pinpointed a pass to Luis Fabiano who controlled with perfection inside box to score. A penalty taken by Kanouté with only three minutes left to play sealed the victory for the home side.

Barcelona 0 vs 0 Getafe

Once again Barcelona lost the chance to close on Real Madrid. In the only match of the round with no goals Barcelona had the better chances but hit the woodwork on no less than three occasions. Getafe’s goal keeper Pato Abbondanziere also played a important role with a great save from Gabi Milito which had looked goal bound all the way. As the match wore on the pace dropped with both sides presumably having an eye on midweek matches in Europe.

Murcia 1 vs 0 Valencia

In a poor match devoid of much quality Valencia lost again. The first opportunity of note fell to Murcia on the half hour mark after good play between De Lucas and Signol. It was a warning Valencia appeared not to heed and four minutes later came the winner, a free kick from the left taken by Abel found Iván Alonso free inside the box who headed home. Despite the win, Murcia are still in trouble at the wrong end of the table and with Valencia not out of the woods either.

Racing Santander 1 vs 3 Deportivo la Coruña

A very important win away from home for Deportivo. All four goals were scored in the first half, the first coming within the opening minute as Xisco gave the lead to the visitors. On 20 minutes, they doubled their advantage through Colocini. Jorge López pulled one back for the home team but Xisco was on hand again for his second of the game to seal the win. Deportivo are now seven points clear from the danger zone and Racing maintain their fifth spot but with Sevilla only two points behind them.

Athletic Bilbao 1 vs 0 Espanyol

Athletic Bilbao were victorious in another exciting match with their winning goal coming early via a header from Garmendia. Athletic were in command for much of the game with a strong showing from their back four and midfield. With their La Liga status secured for next season, Athletic are now focused in a place in Europe next season although with only seven games to go their chances remain slight.

Real Zaragoza 0 vs 3 Betis

In Zaragoza, Betis won the first of the two matches they need maximum points from to secure their La Liga status for next season. Two early goals form Mark González put Betis in command, allowing them to sit back and play on the counter. Zaragoza`s striking force of R. Oliveira, Pablo Aimar and Diego Milito were all denied by Betis’s young goal keeper Casto, and just before the hour mark the visitors sealed the victory through Pavone. Zaragoza are now in the relegation zone and three points behind Recreativo. Betis are 10th.

Levante 0 vs 3 Valladolid

An easy win for Vallodolid away from home this weekend, playing against bottom side Levante. Llorent opened the scoring for Valladolid on 23 minutes in a largely unimpressive first half. Just before the hour mark Valladolid went 2 up through Víctor and they guaranteed victory when Borjan scored their third with 3 minutes remaining. Valladolid are now 15th in the table and 5 points clear of the relegation zone.

Atlético Madrid 6 vs 3 Almería

A real goal fest this one with nine goals and two red cards. Almería were down to 9 men as early as the 40th minute but remained on level terms with the home team for much of the first half. Antonio López started the goal rush for Atlético Madrid within two minutes and moments later, Diego Forlán scored the second from the penalty spot. Felipe Mello got one back for Almería and Ortíz levelled the scores soon after. Simao restored Atlético’s lead but once again, the visitors found an equaliser through Negredo. But with Juanito getting his marching orders just before the break, it became one way traffic. Simao was on hand again to give the lead to Atlético and in the second half, Kun Aguero scored twice to wrap up a fine win.

This week’s highlights in La Liga include an historic come back from Betis against Barça, Villareal moving up to second after beating Atlético Madrid and Real Madrid increasing their lead at the top of the table after beating Sevilla at home.

Felipe Bazon has all the details.

Betis 3 vs 2 Barcelona

Another disaster for Barcelona as they threw away a chance to put pressure in the leaders Real Madrid. Barça started the match at a high tempo and were 2 up inside 20 minutes with goals from young talent Bojan and their experienced centre forward Samuel Eto’o. After the break though it was a different story. Betis pulled a goal back just after the hour mark with Edu getting on the end of a cross from Sobis. Minutes later Victor Valdez saved a penalty from Edu but Betis were not to be denied and equalised through Juanito before Edu gave them the lead with a shot from outside the box.

Villareal 3 vs 0 Atlético Madrid

Home advantage did the trick for Villareal as they won the clash against the team just below them. Villareal put in an almost perfect performance - Carzola gave them the lead and minutes before the break, after a nice combination between Rossi, Carzola set up Nihat for the second. 20 minutes later it was Nihat again who punished the visitors as Villareal over took Barca in the table to move up to second woth Atléitco maintaining fourth place.

Almería 2 vs 1 Levante

Almería were one up in this game within 2 minutes as Soriano chested home a corner taken by Mané which was completely misjudged by the visiting keeper. Their second came much the same way, Mané again the provider from the corner and this time Felipe Mello heading home. Levante tried to respond and pulled a goal back through Iborra but it was too little, too late as Almería took all three points to secure their place in La Liga next season.

Deportivo La Coruña 3 vs 1 Murcia

The visitors, through De Luca, were ahead in this game within 60 seconds but a hat trick from Xisco gave the victory to the home side. First Xisco got in on the end of a cross from Wilhelmsson before two more second half goals from Xisco within 3 minutes of each other made the game safe. The victory moved the home side four points clear of the relegation battle.

Valencia 0 vs 3 Mallorca

Another hugely disappointing home display by Valencia who started brightly but faded as mallorca gained the upper hand. Spanish international Guiza put the vistors in front and they increased that advantage ten minutes later through Ramis. Guiza popped up again on the hour mark to seal the win as Mallorca took another step to keeping their top flight status. Valencia meanwhile were once again booed from the pitch amid shouts of “Koeman vete ya” (leave now Koeman).

Espanyol 0 vs 3 Racing Santander

Espanyol were poor as Racing won three easy points away from home. Two first half chances resulted in two goals for the visitors - the first from Óscar Serrano and the second from Munitis. Espanyol did create four good chances but couldn’t put any of them away and Iván Bolado made them pay as he hit Racing’s third deep in to injury time. The victory puts Racing equal on points with Atlético Madrid.

Recreativo 1 vs 1 Athletic Bilbao

In the only draw of this round in La Liga, relegation threatened Recreativo dominated the match from start to finish and took the lead in lucky circumstances as a dubious corner from Martíns was put through his own net by Amorebieta. The home side continued to control the game but a late goal by Aduriz levelled the scores and Athletic took a point back to Bilbao.

Getafe 0 vs 2 Osasuna

Osasuna won an important victory with the three points moving them away from the relegation zone. Getafe enjoyed the lions share of possession but rarely threatened with their minds, perhaps, on this week’s clash with Bayer Munich in the UEFA Cup. Coach Laudrup rested many of his star players and paid the price in front of their home fans. Osasuna went one up just before the break with a goal from defender Miguel Flaño and penalty in the second half taken by Puñal sealed the victory for the visitors.

Valladolid 2 vs 1 Zaragoza

Valladolid came from behind to win this match and three precious points to assist in their fight for survival. Zapater opened up the scoring for Zaragoza who went in to break with a 1 - 0 lead. Valladolid’s response was prompted by the referee who awarded them a questionable penalty which was converted by Victor. The home team then upped the pace and their efforts were duly rewarded when Llorent scored the winner from a Sesma cross.

Real Madrid 3 vs 1 Sevilla

Real Madrid went six points clear at the top of the table as they forgot past failures to ease past a Sevilla side that has struggled in recent time to recapture the form of a few months ago. Real Madrid went one up through former Manchester United player Heinze, only for the visitors to equalise through another former Premier League star, Freddy Kanoute. Sevilla weren’t on terms for long though as Madrid captain Ra úl restored their advantage with his 290th goal for the club - only the great Di Stéfano has more than him. Sevilla’s goal keeper Palop maintained the visitors’ hopes with a string of good saves before he was beaten for a third time in the game by Higuaín.

With only nine games to go La Liga is red hot. Real Madrid lost at home to Valencia and with Barça winning, Rijkaard’s team are now just four points behind “los blancos. Atlético Madrid and Sevilla, two teams fighting for the last Champions League spot, played each other and you can find out exactly what happened in this week’s La Liga Round up by Felipe Bazon.

Mallorca 1 vs 0 Deportivo La Coruña

In the first match of the weekend things got off to an interesting start with both teams fighting to stay in La Liga next season. Mallorca tried to dominate from the start and inside 20 minutes of the first half Mallorca went ahead when a free kick taken from the right by Arango eluded everyone in the box including the keeper. Deportivo tried to respond as the match went on but Mallorca remained in control to take a vital win.

Sevilla 1 vs 2 Atlético Madrid

Atlético Madrid won a very important match to enhance their Champions League chances for next season. Atlético were the first to score through Argentinian Maxi Rodríguez but Sevilla’s managed an equaliser in the second half after good work from Kanoute and Luis Fabiano that Capel finished off. But Atlético had the decisive player in Kun Aguero who after a cross from Antonio López popped up at the far post to score the wining goal. After that, the game got rather heated and Maresca from Sevilla was sent off after he head butted Aguero.

Real Zaragoza 1 vs 1 Almería

In a very even match with both teams sharing the control, Almería managed to steal a point away from home with a very late goal. Zaragaoza focused most of their attacking through Diego Militio but it was Brazilian striker Ricardo Oliveira who gave the lead to the home side, heading home from a corner. But if Zaragoza thought they had the three points in the bag they reckoned without Uche who touched home a corner taken by Mané in the 89th minute.

Levante 1 vs 2 Villareal

Villareal won their fouth consecutive match after beating bottom side Levante. Matías Fernández gave the visitors the lead with a fizzing shot from outside the box but the home team fashioned a second half equaliser through a powerful header from Miguel Ángel. Pellegrini made three decisive changes, Cani, former Arsenal midfielder Pires and Guille Franco came on, and a few minutes later they provided the winning moment as Cani passed to Pires who dummied allowing Guille Franco to score.

Murcia 4 vs 0 Espanyol

Murcia won their first match under new coach Javier Clemente over a poor Espanyol team that gave away two penalties. Iván Alonso started the scoring from the spot and added a headed seconf. Murcia’s third also came from the penalty spot before Richi ended thr rout after an assist Iván Alonso.

Racing Santander 2 vs 0 Recreativo

Racing deservedly took three points from this game although all the scoring happened late on. Just ten minutes remained when substitute Orteman, on for Colsa, broke the deadlock. Polish international Smoralek scored the second for Racing in the fourth minute of injury time after a classic counter attack that started from a Recreativo corner.

Osasuna 0 vs 1 Real Betis

Betis finally got their revenge over Osasuna, after losing to them on the last three occasions to move away from relegation zone. The match was full of action if not goals with Osasuna going close first off through Delporte and minutes later Montreal’s free kick found Betis’s woodwork, Betis only had a couple of chances in the first half but with the home team running out of ideas and steam in the second period, the visitors made them pay with Mark Gonzáles hammering in the winner from outside the box.

Barcelona 4 vs 1 Valladolid

Two goals and two assists from one of Spain’s biggest new talents saw barca back to winning ways after their midweek loss to Valencia in the “Copa del Rey”. Looking to prove themselves in front of their passionate home fans, it took 23 minutes for wonder kid Bojan to find Samuel Eto’o with a pin point pass for the first goal. At the half hour mark Vallodilod’s striker Llorente produced a swan dive which was bought by the officials and Sesma levelled the scoresfrom the spot. At the beginning of the second half Iniesta scored to put Barça ahead again before Bojan took over to score number three and four to crown a man of the match performance.

Real Madrid 2 vs 3 Valencia

In what was this week’s most exciting game in La Liga, Real Madrid lost in front of their home fans to Valencia. In a fast paced match it was Valencia who scored first through David Villa after Madrid’s defensive frailties were once again laid bare. Madrid’s response was immediate as Ra úl headed home the equaliser before they went ahead 10 minutes in to the second half , Julio Baptista rand Guti setting up Raul for a left foot strike and his second of the game. Valencia were back on level terms through Villa who slotted home from the spot after Canavarro had fouled David Silva inside the box. With 12 minutes to go on the clock, Hildebrand denied Ra úl a hat trick with a fantastic one hand save and with that proved important as with 2 minutes of normal time left Arizmendi received a deep ball on the right, went past Canavarro and scored with style beating Casillas at his left post.

La Liga’s top ten

1 R. Madrid 29 62
2 Barcelona 29 58
3 Villarreal 29 56
4 Atlético 29 50
5 Racing 29 47
6 Sevilla 29 45
7 Espanyol 29 45
8 Athletic 29 39
9 Getafe 29 39
10 Almería 29 39

La Liga Round Up by Felipe Bazon

La Liga Weekly Round up - 16 March 08

This week in La Liga, the two top teams Real Madrid and Barcelona had a bad weekend. Both teams without their major stars struggled away from home. All the jostling in La Liga surrounds mid table, where teams are constantly swapping places for those European spots for next season, keep reading to get all the action from this weekend in La Liga.

Deportivo la Coruña 1-0 Real Madrid

In what was Real Madrid’s ‘worst match’ of the season, “los blancos” lost away from home to Deportivo. With Robinho and Julio Baptista on the bench and van Nistelroy injured, Real Madrid were unable to create many goal scoring opportunities. The first half was quiet with little action but after the break Deportivo started with the greater motivation, but Madrid, against the run of play, had the first opportunity. Madrid then came into the game, having much of the possession and it seemed that it was only a matter of time before Real scored. Then the pendulum swung back to Deportivo and their leftback Filipe drove down the left, crossed in and Pepe of Madrid diverted the ball into his own net. After the goal Schuster brought in Robinho and Higuaín and shortly after Julio Baptista, but even that wasn’t enough to help Real Madrid.

Real Betis 1-2 Athletic Bilbao (abandoned)

Once again Spanish football was spoilt with bad news. 70 minutes into the match Athletic’s goalkeeper was struck in the face by a bottle thrown from the crowd. The keeper had his right eye cut and had to be treated on the field, the ref suspended the match straight after the incident. Before then, a good match was being played out, with many goal opportunities from both sides, Athletic opened up the score with 8 minutes with Yeste, Betis got one back with Mark Gonzáles ten minutes before the end of the first half and 20 minutes into the second half Athletic Bilbao went one up with David Lopéz.

The Spanish football federation ( FEF ) haven’t decided what will happen with regards to this game, a decicion should be made this week.

Recreativo 4-2 Murcia

A real goal fest this one, with the home side gaining the three points. Recreativo took no notice of visitors Murcia, although it was the visitors that scored first, with right forward De Lucas. The home side responded very quickly and four minutes later they levelled the scores with centre forward Sinama Pongolle. That was all the action in the first half.

In the second period, Rubén received a nice pass from Pongolle and touched away to put the home side one up. Ten minutes later Pongolle scored his second of the night and the third for the home side. Murica managed to cut distance with a goal from left forward Iván Alonso and with five minutes to go Marquitos scored Recreativo’s fourth and sealed the victory for the home side.

Valencia 1-2 Sevilla

Once again Valencia disappointed their home fans. With the decisive Luis Fabiano, Sevilla took the three points back to Andal úcia.

It was La Liga top scorer Luis Fabiano who scored the first for the visitors, he took a free kick with precision into Hildebrand’s top right corner. Ten minutes later Luis Fabiano scored again after he deflected in a strike from Keita. Valencia got one back, a corner taken by David Villa, Edu headed the ball to Albiol who found the back of the net, but it was to late for the home side and the visitors Sevilla won the three points

Villareal 2-0 Zaragoza

Villareal won an important match at home over Zaragoza and are now only two points from second placed Barcelona. Zaragoza played the better football in the match, but as we know football is not always about deserving, to win you need goals to win a match and that was what Villareal did. With ten minutes on the clock, Nihat gave the lead to the home side. After the goal a personal duel took place between Villareal’s goalkeeper Diego Lopéz and Zaragoza’s striker Ricardo Oliveira. With two brilliant saves and the help of the woodwork Villareal’s goalkeeper Diego Lopéz won the duel. A penalty assigned in the second half to Villareal taken by Rossi, sealed the victory for the home side.

Getafe 2-1 Racing Santander
Clashing again in midweek, both teams rested players in this La Liga fixture, the semi-final of the Copa del Rey obviously taking priority. All the goal action happened in the second half, the visitors were the first ones to score with a header from Smolarek. After the goal, Laudrup brought in the Nigerian Uche and after a cross from the right from Pable Hernádez the Nigerian scored Getafe’s first and levelled the scores. Ten minutes later Gávillan gave Getafe the lead and the three points.

Espanyol 2-1 Mallorca

Espanyol are back on the European spot hunt after beating Mallorca at home. The visitors were the first ones to score with Spanish international Guiza. Espanayol’s reaction came in the second half with two from Luis García. The first one from the penalty spot and the second after receiving a pass from Ángel, he found the back of the net with a precise strike.

Valladolid 0-0 Osasuna

The only nil nil of the week in La Liga, nothing really happening in a dull game, apart from a couple of opportunities from both sides with out any success. The home side had more first half possession but Osasuna levelled possession up in the second half.

Almería 2-2 Barcelona

Once again Barça dropped points and the chance to close the gap on the leaders Real Madrid. Barcelona scored first with young talent Bojan after Almería’s goal keeper Deigo Alves could not hold on to the ball after a strike from outside the box from Iniesta. On 32 minutes Almería equalised with Pulido who headed in a corner from Corona. Rijkaard replaced Edmílson for Henry and after being on the pitch a minute, the French man assisted Samuel Eto’o, who put Barcelona ahead for the second time in the match. Barcelona then lost Gabriel Milito, who picked up two yellow cards. With ten men, Barcelona almost got their third with Henry, but he was stopped by Almería’s goal keeper Diego Alves. Then with five minutes to go, another mistake by Barça’s defence. Almería levelled the scores with Uche again from a corner taken by Corona.

Atlético Madrid 3-0 Levante

Playing against bottom side Levante and in front of their home fans Atlético won the match to keep their Champions League spot. Simao scored first for Atlético after a mistake from Levante’s defence. From another mistake by Levante’s defence came Atlético’s second. This time with former Man Utd striker Diego Fórlan, who also scored the third after nice play by Aguero. He let one fly and Kujovic couldn’t hold on to the ball, Forlán put it home to seal the victory for Atlético Madrid.

1 Real Madrid 28 62
2 Barcelona 28 55
3 Villarreal 28 53
4 Atletico Madrid 28 47
5 Sevilla 28 45
6 Espanyol 28 45
7 Racing Santander 28 44
8 Getafe 28 39
9 Almeria 28 38
10 Valencia 28 36

La Liga weekly round up - by Felipe Bazon

Real Madrid win at home and are now eight points clear at the top of La Liga and while Barça may have come unstuck at the Camp Nou, Rijkaard insists the race for the title isn’t over yet.

Real Zaragoza 2 vs 1 Atlético Madrid

In a match where the ref played a decisive role, turning down two penalty appeals, Zaragoza took the three points. Simao opened the scoring with fantastic strike form outside the box but minutes later, after a corner taken by Zaragoza, Atlético’s defender Pablo put through his own net to level the scores. In the second half Kun Aguero missed a few clear cut opportunities and with Atlético relying to much on the Argentinian they soon paid the price as Deigo Militio’s penalty gave Zaragoza victory.

Real Madrid 2 vs 1 Espanyol

After been knocked out of Champions League in midweek “los Blancos” were looking to extend their lead at the top of the table. But they soon had a much harder task in front of them as Espanyol, fighting for a place in Europe next season, opened the scoring through Valdo. Espanyol dominated the first half, but couldn’t prevent Madrid from grabbing an equaliser from Higuaín. The second half was again all about Espanyol but a questionable penalty from Ra úl, his 200th goal for the club, gave Real Madrid the lead and ultimately the three points.

Osasuna 2 vs 1 Almería

With all the goal action in the first half, Osasuna won their fourth consecutive match at home and continue to move away from the danger zone. Within the first ten minutes, Osasuna were one up with a goal from centre forward Kike Sola who dribbled past the goalkeeper and slotted home with the net unattended. Almería equalised from a Corona header but the home side engineered a winner from Cruchaga, to take the victory.

Sevilla 2 vs 1 Levante

Still feeling the effects of their Champions League defeat by by Fenerbahçe, Sevilla were soon behind in this game after Riga let fly form outside the box giving Palop no chance. Sevilla then seemed to wake up and with 27 minutes gone, Keita headed in a cross from Jesus Navas to level the score. Two minutes into the second half, La Liga’s top scorer Luis Fabiano put away a cross for his 20th goal of the season to secure all three points for the home team against the side bottom of the league.

Mallorca 7 vs 1 Recreativo

After a hand full of draws Mallorca gained a stylish victory against a fragile Recreativo. Arango opened the scoring followed by two from Spanish international Guiza and a fourth from Borja Valero. Recreativo got one back from Ruben, but Mallorca were not to be denied their goal scoring rout. Borja Valero scored their fifth, with Arango completing his hat trick in the second period.

Murcia 0 vs 3 Getafe

Murcia’s new manager Clemetnte had little to celebrate as his charges were well beaten at home. After a goalless first period, Getafe’s first was scored by Pablo Hernández with a decent strike from outside the box. The second came from Albín and a third followed in the final few minutes from Casquero.

Racing Santander 3 vs 0 Betis

Betis started well but were soon at a disadvantage after defender Meli was sent off. They reached the break level at nil - nil but then the floodgates opened. Duscher scored the first for Racing and minutes later a defensive mistake led to a second from Garay. Tchité added a third as Racing kept up their charge for a place in next season’s Champions League.

Athletic Bilbao 2 vs 0 Valladolid

With both teams fighting to stay in La Liga next season Athletic Bilbao dominated this game from start to finish. A cross from the right form Llorente allowed Gabilondo score the first for the home side who were then given another boost with the dismissal of Pedro Lopez for the visitors. After surving a spell of pressure from the away team, Athletic’s Gabilondo scored his second, aghain after a cross Llorente.

Valencia 2 vs 2 Deportivo La Coruña

Valencia started the match at high speed and before the half hour mark they were two goals to the good. Arizmendi created both scoring opportunities, first setting up Mata followed by a pin point cross to David Villa who headed home from inside the box. Inexplicably Valencia then lowered their guard and Deportivo got one back with Sergio and minutes later Lafita scored the equalizer.

Barcelona 1 vs 2 Villareal

After seven year wait, Villareal won at the Camp Nou, inflicting Barca’s second straight league defeat. Villareal scored first with Marcos Senna penalty before a good move from the home side and assist from Iniesta led to an equaliser from Xavi. Villareal’s coach Pellegrini then brought on Tomasson and it proved to be an inspired decision as the replacement scored the winner for the visitors who took home the spoils.

La Liga Top Ten Standings

Real Madrid 27 62
Barcelona 27 54
Villareal 27 50
Atlético Madrid 27 44
Racing S. 27 44
Sevilla 27 42
Espanyol 27 42
Almería 27 37
Valencia 27 36
Getafe 27 36

La Liga weeky round up - by Felipe Bazon

This week in La Liga we were blessed with spectacular goals and exciting matches. Highlights included acrobatics from Ronaldinho, Kun Aguero’s second against Barça and Robinhos chip over Recreativo’s goalkeeper. Keep reading to get all the action from this week in La Liga.

Atlético Madrid 4 vs 2 Barcelona

In what was the best match of the weekend, Barcelona went one up with a spectacular bicycle kick from Ronaldinho after a cross from the right from Xavi, but the home side responded with a goal from Kun Aguero who then assisted Maxi Lopez to score the second just before half time. At the beginning of the second half Carlos Puyol gave away a penalty after pushing Kun Aguero inside the box and ex Manchester United player Diego Forlán scored Atlético’s third goal, but the best was still to come, Kun Aguero dribbled past two Barcelona defenders and let fly from outside the box for Atlético’s fourth. Barcelona got one back from Eto’o but it was Atlético Madrid and Kun Aguero’s night.

Recreativo 2 vs 3 Real Madrid

Real Madrid did not start the match well, and with 15 minutes of the first half they were one down with a goal from Recreativo’s defender Cáceres. Raul drew the match level with a goal from an offside position not spotted by the officials. The game then turned violent and Beto from Recreativo was sent off after hitting Heinze in the face before Sergio Ramos from Real Madrid was also red carded after elbowing Sinama. After 28 minutes of the second half Schuster replaced Canavaro for Robinho and the Brazilian international scored Madrid’s second and third, the latter via a beautiful over the goalkeeper. Recreativo got one back through midfielder Martíns but it was to late to deny Madrid their first league win for nearly a month.

Deportivo La Coruña 2 vs 1 Sevilla

Sevilla could not hold on to the lead and lost away from home to Deportivo La Coruña. Sevilla went one up with a goal from centre forward Kanouté but ten minutes later Deportivo levelled things up through Wilhelmsson before taking a match winning lead in the second half with a goal from left forward Lafita. With the victory Deportivo move away from relegation zone whilst denting Sevilla’s Champions League ambitions.

Espanyol 2 vs 0 Valencia

After a great result during the week agaisnt Barcelona at the Camp Nou in the “Copa del Rey” Valencia lost again in the league. The visitors were soon trailing after German goalkeeper Timo Hildebrand’s mistake let in
Espanyol’s midfielder Luís Garcia to score the opener. Espanyol had more changes to extend the lead and the second came in the second half again from Luís Garcia but this time from the penalty spot. Valencia are now 9th and Espanyol 5th and only two points away from a Champions League spot.

Levante 2 vs 1 Real Zaragoza

Levante are still alive in the league thanks largely to Real Zaragoza’s defence. Levante took advantage of the two mistakes from Zaragoza’s back four to claim all three points, Geijo scored the first for Levante and Riga the second. Zaragoza got one back through midfielder Óscar but it wasn’t to be enough for the visitors. Even with the win Levante are still bottom and Real Zaragoza are 17th.

Real Betis 4 vs 0 Murcia

Betis won a very important victory in a match they dominated from the ouset following a first minute own goal by Arzu. The second came after a cross from Mark Gonzáles to Edu who headed home for his seventh consecutive headed goal. 15 minutes into the second half Mark Gonzáles assisted Pavone to score Betis third and the fourth followed from Rafael Sóbis via the penalty spot. With the win Betis are now 11th and Murcia maintain their 19th spot with only one point won in eight matches.

Valladolid 0 vs 1 Racing Santander

In a match without much action, Racing took all three points courtesy of a late strike from Ducher who slammed the ball home from outside the box. The victory enhances Racing’s dream of reaching Europe next season whilst Valladolid are 13th.

Getafe 3 vs 3 Mallorca

Getafe drew a match that they surely thought was in the bag, leading as they were by 2 goals with not long left on the clock. Getafe went ahead through Cotelo in the first minute of play and the second came after a decent header from Albín. But two minutes later Guiza scored for Mallorca to raise the away side’s hopes. In the second half Getafe scored their third with a own goal from Mallorca’s defender Ramis. It remained at 3 - 1 until with 15 minutes to go Mallorca scored their second after a perfect free kick taken by Arango. And just 60 seconds later the game was all sqaure after a header from defender Ramis.

Villareal 0 vs 0 Osasuna

In the only nil nil of this round Villareal drew their third straight match at home in the league. The match had only two real goal opportunities, one for each side. With the draw Villareal maintain their third place position with 47 points only three ahead of Atlético Madrid. Osasuna are 14th with 30 points.

Almería 1 vs 1 Athletic Bilbao

In the last game of the weekend Amería and Atheltic Bilbao drew one - one. All the goal action came in the second period with Almería taking the lead on the hour mark with a penalty from Negredo. The equalizer came 15 minutes later from Llorente with the assist coming from Orbaiz.

1 R. Madrid 26 59
2 Barcelona 26 54
3 Villarreal 26 47
4 Atlético 26 44
5 Espanyol 26 42
6 Racing 26 41
7 Sevilla 26 39
8 Almería 26 37
9 Valencia 26 35
10 Getafe 26 33

La Liga Round-Up by Felipe Bazon

Weekly Round Up - 24th Feb 08

This week’s highlights are Sevilla’s five nil victory over Real Zaragoza, Barcelona’s victory at home with a hat trick from Samuel Eto’o and Real Madrid’s defeat at home to Getafe.

La Liga is alive and on fire now, with only two points between leaders Real Madrid and second place Barcelona.

Valencia 1-1 Recreativo

In one of the best matches Valencia played this season, they still could not manage to keep the three points. Valencia opened up the scoring at the end of the first half with a nice strike from left winger Mata, but a spectacular strike, outside the box from midfielder Martins meant Recreativo drew the match and took a point home.

Sevilla 5-0 Real Zaragoza

Sevilla blew away Real Zaragoza on Saturday with a five nil victory at home.

Sevilla opened up the scoring fest with Luis Fabiano, after a nice cross from the right by captain Daniel Alver. Luis Fabiano also scored the second after a perfect one-two with Daniel Alves. He chipped the ball over Zaragoza’s goal keeper, the other two goals were scored by Zaragoza’s own defenders, first Ayala scored an own goal when the ball accidentally hit his leg and went in. Then Diogo trying to block a strike from Luis Fabiano, kicked the ball in his own goal. Keita finished the count with a header.

Sevilla maintain their fifth position, two points away from the Champion’s League spot and Zaragoza are now 15th .

Athletic Bilbao 1-2 Villareal

Villareal travelled to Bilbao with only one thing in mind, to come back home with the three points. But before the fourth minute Athletic Bilbao were one up with a goal from forward Llorente. Atheltic Bilbao dominated the first and deserved the result at half time. The second half was a totally different story, Villareal turned things around, first with left forward Guille Franco and then with left back Capedevilla.

With the victory Villareal consolidated their third place, moving 5 points away from fourth place Atlético Madrid, Athletic Bilbao are 14th.

Osasuna 3-1 Atlético Madrid

Before the first minute of play Osasuna were one nil up with a goal from centre forward Kike Sola. Four minutes later it was the left winger’s turn, Vela scoring the second for Osasuna. Not even a goal from ex Man Utd striker Forlan in the 26th minute could get Atlético back into the game. Osasuna’s third goal was scored in the 75th minute with right winger Hector Font and it sealed the victory and kept the three points.

Atlético Madrid are still fourth and Osasuna are now 13th.

Deportivo La Coruña 2-0 Espanyol

Even with three points Deportivo are still in the relegation zone, but this victory was important to give them more confidence and keep them fighting to move away from danger.

In a match that was never going to be a easy, Deportivo killed the game in the first half with two goals. The first one was scored by defender Colocini and the second by left winger Lafita. Deportivo maintain last week’s place at 17th and Espanyol drop a place and are now 6th with the same number of points as Sevilla.

Mallorca 1-1 Real Betis

With a first half without much action, Mallorca and Betis scored a goal apiece in the second, taking a point each.

Mallorca struck first, with right winger Varela on the 55th minute, but Betis got one back with Brazilian forward Edu 15 minutes later. Mallorca haven’t won a match since the second stage of the league started and are now 12th, Betis are 16th.

Murcia 0-1 Valladolid

In a match where both teams needed the three points to enhance their La Liga security, it was Valladolid that managed to take the bacon.

Again Valladolid’s centre forward was decisive and scored the only goal of the match.

Murcia are still second from bottom and Vallodolid breath better now, moving four points clear from the relegation zone and are now 11th.

Racing Santander 1-0 Almería

Racing Santander won their first game of the second stage whilst Almería finished the game with nine players.

The first half was quite even with both teams creating, but not finishing with any accuracy.

Racing Santander boosted their chances of a place in Europe next season, when Mohamed Tchite struck on 61 minutes. Almería sememd to lose the plot after the goal, Cisma Domingo and Veljko Paunovic both seeing red for the visitors late on after collecting two bookings each.

Almería drop a place and are now 8th and Racing Santander move up a place and are now 7th.

Barcelona 5-1 Levante

Goals galore was the tale at the Camp Nou.

Barcelona played possibly their best football in the La Liga this season. Messi was unstoppable running in from both sides, but it was Xavi that scored the first for Barça in the 14th minute. After Zambrotta’s hand ball inside the box, the ref assigned a penalty and Levante’s strikers Riga drew Levante level.

Barça’s response came straight away, a one-two from Messi and Xavi, a nice strike with his left foot, and Messi put Barça two one up just before half time.

The second half was a show apart from Cameroon international Samuel Etoo. With a hat trick he lead Barça to the victory. Barcelona with the victory heat up the fight for the title and are now only two points away from leaders Real Madrid, Levante are still bottom of the table with only 16 points.

Real Madrid 0-1 Getafe

Real Madrid started the match with only one thing in mind a win!

Knowing that Barcelona had won their match earlier, “Los Blancos” needed the three points at home more than anything. They were also looking for their 19th straight league victory at home.

Madrid dominated the whole of the first half, with the return of van Nystelroy to the starting eleven helping, but there were only two real go opportunities both of them with Julio Baptista, one was a free kick that the ball passed really close to the cross bar and the second was header that the ball hits the back of the head of Getafe defender and goes out. Second half again was all about Real Madrid, but after Robben scoring a goal in offside position, without noticing that the lines had given the offside almost all the Madrid players went to celebrate with Robben, Getafe took the free kick and caught Madrid’s defence wide open and Uche scored the only goal of the match. Madrid are still top but with only two points between them and Barcelona, Getafe are now 10th.

La Liga top ten standings

01 Real Madrid 25 56
02 Barcelona 25 54
03 Villareal 25 46
04 Atlético Madrid 25 41
05 Sevilla 25 39
06 Espanyol 25 39
07 Racing Santander 25 38
08 Almería 25 36
09 Valencia 25 35
10 Getafe 25 32

La Liga Roundup by Felipe Bazon

La Liga - Weekly Round Up - 17th Feb 08

Here we go with our first La Liga Weekly Round Up. We’ll be covering and commenting on all the matches played every week in La Liga.

So lets get down to business. Matchday started with Real Madrid 8 points clear at the top, but the second straight defeat away from the “Bernabeu” and Barça’s victory over Zaragoza closed the gap to five points and kept Barça alive in La Liga.

Real Betis 2 -1 Real Madrid

What looked like being another easy victory for league leaders Real Madrid, turned out to be a frustrating match for them.

Real Madrid started at high speed and within only five minutes they were one up. A long pass through the defence from Gago to Robben, who crossed in to Julio Baptista. Baptista did not manage to put the ball away, but Drenthe was coming from the right and with precision scored the first for Madrid.

The early goal allowed the Madrid players to relax, and the game lost quality. With Betis unable to create any chances Madrid thought they had the 3 points in the bag, but Betis were not yet out. They discovered Madrid’s “Achilles Heel”.

Just inside the half hour mark Betis managed to turn the game around with two identical goals. The first one, a cross from the left from striker Pavone found Edu inside the box, Edu headed the ball in to Casillas’s bottom left corner and four minutes later it was Edu’s turn to cross the ball in to Mark Gonzáles, who headed the ball again in the same corner.

The second half was quiet with few scoring opportunities. van Nistelrooy created the only real goal opportunity, but was stopped by the post.

Madrid lost their second consecutive away match, allowing Barcelona to close the gap to only five points, and Betis with the three points are climbing up the table moving further away from relegation zone.

Espanyol 2 - 4 Sevilla

In a very offensive match Sevilla won another three points away from home. With both strikers in top form, Luis Fabiano and Kanoute.

A pass from Kanoute, allowed Luis Fabiano to open the scoring for Sevilla. Four minutes later it was Luis Fabiano’s turn to make the pass for Kanoute to score the second for Sevilla.

Just before half time, Espanyol scored their first from Luis Garcia, after nice play from Zabaleta. The second half began with Espanyol putting pressure on Sevilla’s defence, looking for the draw, but it was Sevilla who scored the third after a deflected strike from outside the box from Poulsen. Two minutes later Espanyol got one back, a nice volley from Coro after Palop’s bad clearance. Without giving time to Espanyol to celebrate the goal, Sevilla scored their fourth, a minute later with Capel.

With the win Sevilla are now closer to the Champions League spot and Espanyol maintain their fifth position 3 points ahead of Sevilla.

R. Zaragoza 1 - 2 FC Barcelona

After Madrid’s defeat, Barcelona started the match knowing they needed the three points to close the gap and keep their title dream alive.

With Ronaldinho on the bench again, Barcelona were the first to score. A nice pass from Deco to Henry, who inside the box controlled the ball with his arm and touched the ball past Zaragoza’s goal keeper Ricardo. Neither the ref, nor the linesman who was facing the act, noticed that Henry controlled the ball with his arm. Diego Milito missed a penalty for Zaragoza just before half time. Ten minutes in to the second half Zaragoza scored their first with Ricardo Oliveira after a nice cross from Sergio Garcia. After the goal Zaragoza started to pressure Barcelona in their own half and if it wasn’t for goalkeeper Victor Valdez, with two brilliant saves, Barcelona would have conceded. In the 81st minute Juanfran controlled the ball with his shoulder inside the box, but the linesman and referee thought he controlled with his arm and assigned the penalty for Barcelona. Ronaldinho, who had entered the match ten minutes earlier, took the penalty and scored his 7th this season and sealed Barcelona’s victory.

With the three points, Barcelona close the gap between them and Real Madrid to only five points, Zaragoza maintain their 29 points and are 10th.

Levante 2 - 1 Osasuna

In a match where both teams needed the three points, bottom club Levante triumphed.

Osasuna scored first with Montreal in the 20th minute of the first half, but with a lot of determination from the home side and two goals in less than three minutes, goals from Álvaro and Geijo, Levante won the match and the three points.

Levante are still bottom of the table but the three points kept their dream of not been relegated alive, while Osasuna keep falling and are now 4th from bottom.

Villarreal 0 - 0 Racing Santander

Both teams have distinct European dreams and it was Villareal that started creating more chances, but striker Rossi wasn’t having a good day, missing a penalty kick and having a goal disallowed in the last minute of normal time, with an offside decision badly judged by the linesman.

Villareal are still in the Champions League zone while Racing are in the UEFA Cup zone.

Almería 1 - 0 Murcia

A goal from the Negredo in the first half was all that Almería needed to beat Murcia and enter the UEFA Cup zone. Again the man of the match was Almería’s goalkeeper Diego Alves, with some brilliant saves to keep the three points home.

Murcia are still in the relegation zone and see a way out of it, further and further away.

Valladolid 1 - 1 Mallorca

After losing by 7 - 0 at Real Madrid last week, Valladolid could not hold on to the lead and allowed Mallorca to walk away with one point. Valladolid were the first ones to score with a goal from Llorent five minutes before half time. A goal from Ibagaza ten minutes from time meant Mallorca drew the match and grabbed a point away from home.

Both teams are in the middle of the table.

Recreativo 3 - 2 Deportivo La Coruña

Everything happened in this game; goals, yellow cards, red cards, penalty not given by the referee, more goals, balls hitting the woodwork, great saves…..

With only one goal in the first half from Deportivo’s left winger Verd ú, all the other goals were scored in the second half. Recreativo equalised with Beto, and took the lead with a goal from striker Simana Pangolle. With ten minutes to go, Deportivo equalised, left winger Rikki who had replaced Verd ú got the goal. With three minutes to go Recreativo’s defender Martín Cáceres scored and took the lead and the three points.

Getafe 0 - 0 Valencia

Getafe and Valencia drew with no goals in a match that started very attractive for the fans that showed up to watch, but soon lost its appeal. With David Villa out of action after been sent off with a red card due to a bad tackle on De la Red, Getafe could not reflect its superiority on the field, and allowed Valencia to walk away with one point.

Valencia is in 9th place and Getafe is in 13th .

Atlético Madrid 1 - 2 Athletic Bilbao

Atlético Madrid lost their progression away from the UEFA spots, they could not beat Athletic Bilbao at home, after going one up with a goal from Antonio López. Aguire’s boys could not hold on to the lead in front of the home crowd and allowed two goals before half time, one from Susaseta and one from Llorente. Atlético are fourth and Athletic Bilbao move away form relegation zone and are now 12th.

La Liga Top Ten Standings

1 Real Madrid 24 56
2 Barcelona 24 51
3 Villarreal 24 43
4 Atletico Madrid 24 41
5 Espanyol 24 39
6 Sevilla 24 36
7 Almeria 24 36
8 R. Santander 24 35
9 Valencia 24 34
10 Real Zaragoza 24 29