La Liga Round-Up: Almeria & Sporting Gijon Clinch Wins With Early Goals

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Almeria (MARCA)

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Teams

• Almeria
• Espanyol
• Osasuna
• Sporting de Gijon
• Valladolid
• Xerez

SATURDAY

Tenerife 2-2 Malaga: See full match report

 Getafe 0-2 Deportivo La Coruna: See full match report

Barcelona 4-2 Real Mallorca: See full match report

Atletico Madrid 2-3 Real Madrid: See full match report

SUNDAY

Racing Santander 0-2 Athletic Bilbao

See full match report

Real Valladolid 0-0 Xerez

Xerez may be the team struggling to find the back of the net this season, but Valladolid offered very little themselves in attack in this clash at the Jose Zorrilla. In fact, it was the goal-shy Andalucians who looked the more adventurous side. Fabian Orellana produced the first meaning shot at goal after 25 minutes when he ran on to Giancarlo Maldonado’s through ball but his low drive from a tight angle was saved by Justo Villar at his near post.

And two minutes into first half injury time, Xerez made the best move of the evening when Orellana lobbed a cross towards Mario Bermejo, whose blistering effort was saved brilliantly by Villar.

Whatever Valladolid coach, Jose Luis Mendilibar said to his players during the break must have worked as his men looked a completely different side in the second half. Nivaldo and Pele came close but it was Diego Castro who had the best chance to break the deadlock on 55 minutes. However, he failed to beat Renan in a one-on-one.

Manucho then had his face in his hands after blazing a shot over from six yards out following a goalmouth scramble, before Fabian Canobbio saw his piledriver from a tight angle shave the crossbar. The frustration was evident in the Pucelano bench and Mendilibar’s evening was compounded when the coach was brandished a red card ten minutes from time for over-protesting.

Sporting Gijon 1-0 Espanyol

Sporting and Espanyol were battling with each other on the wrong end of the table last season, but the two sides have been surprisingly impressive this term. With only one defeat between them in the last seven rounds, both sides were looking to continue their admirable run and it was the hosts who drew first blood after just three minutes on the clock when Mate Bilic diverted a Diego Castro shot past a wrong-footed Carlos Kameni. 

Luis Garcia almost equalised for the Catalan-based outfit two minutes later when he thumped his header wide from close range. He came even closer on 20 minutes when he crashed his shot against the bar after latching on to Jose Callejon’s cross. Espanyol continued to lay siege on their opponents’ goal and in the 43rd minute, Ivan Alonso tried to steer in Pillud’s shot but saw his cheeky deflection trickle wide.

The Blanc-i-Blau ran out of steam in the second half as they failed to maintain the pressure they applied in the first. Shunsuke Nakamura had two freekick opportunities from a dangerous distance but the Japanese failed to trouble Juan Pablo in the Sporting goal. As the clock ticked down, it was the Asturians who looked likeliest to score but the solitary goal was enough for them to secure three points to consolidate seventh spot in the table.

Almeria 2-0 Osasuna

Hugo Sanchez’s side have been labouring for goals so far this campaign, but it didn’t take them long to stun the Navarrans. Barely two minutes into the game, Guilherme whipped in a cross from the left which Ricardo managed to palm it away, only to bounce off the head of the unsuspecting Josetxo and into the back of his own net.

Osasuna immediately went on the assault in an attempt to draw the game level with Walter Pandiani, Javier Camunas and Javad Nekounam all having a crack at goal but to no avail. The visitors nearly paid for their profligacy when Fernando Soriano almost doubled Almeria’s lead on the stroke of half time. He pounced on a loose ball and rattled a shot past Ricardo, but Josetxo managed to clear it off the line to atone for his own goal.

Jose Antonio Camacho’s visiting troops picked up where they left off for the second half. Pandiani again had a glorious opportunity in the 67th minute when Nekounam’s shot was blocked by Hernan Bernadello, but ‘The Rifle’ stabbed his rebound wide from close range.

And Osasuna would rue their missed chances when Kalu Uche put the game beyond reach in the 89th minute with a low shot straight into the bottom left corner.

Valencia - Real Zaragoza: Kick off 19:00 CET

Sevilla - Villarreal: Kick off 21:00 CET

Click here for full standings…

KS Leong, Goal.com