MADRID: FC Barcelona saw their lead at the top of La Liga cut to 11 points when they were held 0-0 away to Getafe. Barca were unable to break down a well-drilled rival and failed to score for their third consecutive match, following another flat performance. Barca’s injury problems got worse in the 18th minute when Sergi Roberto had to limp off with a muscle injury and was replaced by Eric Garcia.
Their best chance came in the 26th minute when Raphinha hit the post when put clean through, and Alex Balde also sent the rebound against the woodwork, but overall, Barca disappointed once again and didn’t do enough against a rival that dug deep for a vital point. Although Cadiz goalkeeper David Gil made several good saves, Nacho Fernandez scored a powerful shot in the 72nd minute, and Marco Asensio made it 2-0 just three minutes later.
Two goals from Antoine Griezmann extended Atletico Madrid’s run to 10 wins from 12 games as they defeated Almeria 2-1.
Atletico dominated the game, with Griezmann opening the scoring in the fifth minute, and although Leo Baptistao leveled with Almeria’s only shot on target in the 39th minute, Griezmann popped up again four minutes later to win the match.
Inaki Williams scored twice as Athletic Bilbao won the Basque derby 2-0 at home to Real Sociedad. Williams’ first goal came following a 33rd-minute corner, while his second came with a powerful shot to finish off a perfect counterattack with 20 minutes left to play.
Betis are three points behind fourth-place Real Sociedad after a 3-1 win at home to Espanyol, who remain second from bottom. Ayoze Perez’s first goal for Betis put them ahead in the 26th minute, and he then turned provider for Joan Miranda to score Betis’ second of the game, seven minutes later. Cesar Montes got Espanyol back into the game two minutes into the second half, but William Carvalho made the game safe for Betis in the 68th minute with a powerful shot.
Girona beat bottom-of-the-table Elche 2-0 to almost assure their place in the top-flight next season with goals from Valentin Castellanos and Oriol Romeu.
Valencia’s problems increased, however, as they lost 2-0 at home to Sevilla, who continue to improve since the arrival of Jose Luis Mendilibar as coach.
Second half goals from Loric Bade and Suso condemned Valencia to defeat, and things got worse in the 86th minute when Ilaix Moriba was sent off, meaning he missed next weekend’s vital trip to Elche.
Valladolid pulled off a shock away win to Villarreal with goals from Selim Amallah and Jawad El Yamiq in the second and 34th minute of the game, and although Etienne Capoue pulled a goal back for the home side with 16 minutes left to play, Valladolid held on and could have added a third with better finishing. IANS
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