Real Zaragoza 1-2 Athletic Bilbao: Iker Muniain Inspires Basque Outfit To Victory

Real Zaragoza 1-2 Athletic Bilbao - Lineup/Stats
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After a dour first half failed to produce any goals, Athletic Bilbao scored twice in the last half hour of the game through Mikel San Jose and Susaeta thanks to an inspired performance from young substitute, Iker Muniain.

Athletic had the ball in the back of the net after just a minute when Pablo Orbaiz’s free kick from the left was guided in by Carlos Gurpegi’s glancing header. The Basques players celebrated but after a delay, the referee annulled the goal because of offside, event hough the linesman’s flag had stayed down.

Zaragoza responded immediately when Jermaine Pennant’s corner found Lafita, who was just beaten to the ball by a sloppy punch from Gorka Iraizoz. The Aragons quickly controlled the game, but Los Leones had another free kick opportunity on 13 minutes, but Xabier Castillo’s cheeky attempt to sneak the ball in at the near post was read and easily collected by Zaragoza ‘keeper, Lopez Vallejo.

Neither side could create anything meaningful after that. Despite providing plenty of end-to-end action in what was a generally open and frantic game, both sets of players let their lack of quality show as they failed to produce the killer pass required in the final third of the pitch.

But La Romareda exploded to life in the 42nd minute when Zaragoza saw three attempts on goal turned away in quick succession. Pennant’s cross was again poorly punched away Iraizoz and Jorge Lopez’s rebound was cleared off the line by Fernando Amorebieta. But it only fell to Lafita, whose own follow up was smothered by a flailing Iraizoz, before Jorge Lopez’s second rebound effort was blocked by a crowd of defenders.

Los Manos and Jorge Lopez in particular, picked up the second half where they had left off and just three minutes into the restart, he fired in a thunderous volley from 20 yards out and although he did brilliantly to keep it down, his effort flashed just wide of Iraizoz’s right post. Moments later, Javier Arizmendi tried his luck from distance but his attempt also flew wide.

But it was Athletic who took the lead on 60 minutes. Iker Muniain, who had just come on for Fernando Llorente minutes earlier, twisted and turned his way past Francisco Pavon out of the left flank before clipping a perfectly weighted cross to the middle and Mikel San Jose ghosted in from nowhere to thump a bullet header into the far corner.

Zaragoza should have equalised six minutes later. Pennant did well to float a cross to the back post for an unmarked Arizmendi, but his tame header downwards was gathered comfortably by Iraizoz. Jorge Lopez then saw another ambitious attempt from distance whistle wide.

Athletic almost doubled their advantage in the 77th minute. Muniain fed Susaeta down the left flank but the winger’s low cross was hastily cleared away and his rebound was blocked. Iraola then connected with Gaizka Toquero’s cross from the right but sliding forward at full stretch, he could only stab the ball into the side netting.

But ten minutes from time, the visitors found their buffer goal. Again it was the brilliant Muniain who led the counterattack when he waltzed forward unchallenged and cleverly slipped in a through ball to Susaeta, who finished with a firm shot past Lopez Vallejo.

A minute into injury time, the home side pulled one back when Carlos Diogo’s speculative effort from 25 yards out sneaked past Iraizoz after taking a wicked deflection off two defenders. There were barely any celebrations from the Aragons on the pitch or in the dugout as Marcelinho’s men crashed to their third defeat in succession.

For Athletic, their fourth win in their last six La Liga outings has momentarily taken them up to seventh in the standings.

KS Leong, Goal.com