La Liga Roundup: Sociedad wins at Rayo to close in on top 2 in Spain
BARCELONA, Spain — Led by an ageless David Silva and a striker taking advantage of a second probability, Real Sociedad is threatening to make it a three-way title battle within the Spanish league.
Sociedad’s 2-0 win at Rayo Vallecano within the capital on Saturday pulled it degree with second-placed Real Madrid every week earlier than they face each other. Leader Barcelona is simply three factors clear.
Both powerhouses have two extra video games to play, however the San Sebastian staff, which hasn’t received the league because the Nineteen Eighties, is approaching sturdy with 9 straight wins throughout the league and the Copa del Rey.
Imanol Alguacil’s Sociedad faces an enormous week forward. It visits Camp Nou on Wednesday to play Barcelona within the Copa del Rey quarterfinals then visits the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday to face Madrid within the league.
Alguacil, nevertheless, urged his gamers not to have a look at the standings.
“That will only make us let up,” he mentioned, contemplating that is spherical 18 of 38. “There is a long way to go. Let’s see where we are when there are only five or six rounds left.”
Silva helped to place Sociedad forward within the fifteenth minute when the 37-year-old midfielder recovered the ball and slipped a cross to satisfy the run of Alexander Sorloth. The Norway striker used one contact of the tip of his boot to stab the ball beneath goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski.
Sociedad doubled the lead within the thirty sixth on a set-piece. Aritz Elustondo curled round a scrum of gamers to shake his marker and redirected a nook kick to the far publish the place Ander Barrenetxea completed it off.
While Silva continues to be displaying the playmaking abilities from his finest years at Manchester City and for Spain, Sorloth is having fun with an outstanding season of his personal. Following a ho-hum 2021-22 marketing campaign on mortgage at Sociedad, Sorloth was introduced again once more on mortgage from Leipzig after Sociedad bought Alexander Isak to Newcastle. But Sorloth was nonetheless set to be the second possibility till high signing Umar Sadiq sustained a critical knee harm in September.
Sorloth has responded by scoring eight instances in 14 league video games, together with an ongoing five-round scoring streak, in comparison with simply three objectives in 32 league video games final season.
Sociedad received its third Copa del Rey in 2020. Its two Spanish league titles got here in 1981 and 1982.
PRETTY IN PINK
Even together with his hair dyed vivid pink, Antoine Griezmann nonetheless proved inconceivable for defenders to trace as he scored as soon as and performed a component in two extra objectives within the opening half hour of Atletico Madrid’s 3-0 victory over Valladolid.
Griezmann deftly supplied an help with a flick of the again of his heel to play Alvaro Morata clear for the 18th-minute opener at Metropolitano Stadium. The France ahead scored from near make it 2-0 within the twenty fourth and his free kick lastly went in on a rebound by Mario Hermoso within the twenty eighth.
Memphis Depay debuted for Atletico within the seventy fifth a day after the Netherlands ahead transferred from Barcelona to assist fill the void left by João Felix’s transfer to Chelsea.
Atletico, which stayed fourth, subsequent performs Madrid within the Copa del Rey quarterfinals on Thursday.
BETIS LOSES
Espanyol beat Real Betis 1-0 because of Martin Braithwaite’s objective simply earlier than halftime. The guests stumbled within the chase for a top-four end. Betis suffered a 3rd consecutive defeat.
SEVILLA WINS
Ivan Rakitic transformed an 89th-minute penalty to grab Sevilla a 1-0 victory over Cadiz and raise it out of the relegation zone. Ivan Alejo gave away the penalty when he used his hand to deflect a cross within the field. That infraction earned him a second reserving and a sending off.
.acf-block-preview .br-related-links-wrapper {
show: grid;
grid-template-columns: repeat(2, 1fr);
hole: 20px;
}
.acf-block-preview .br-related-links-wrapper a {
pointer-events: none;
cursor: default;
text-decoration: none;
coloration: black;
}
