Matchday 16 - Round-up

Barcelona broke the league record for consecutive away victories with a 1-5 thrashing of local rivals Espanyol in the Catalan derby. Espanyol’s excellent run so far in 2010-11 and their 100% record at the Cornella El Prat this term were supposed to make this an intense and evenly fought tie but it was anything but as the Barca juggernaut rolled on. Pedro and David Villa both notched up braces and Xavi scored the other but Lionel Messi was the real star of the show, despite failing to get on the scoresheet. Pablo Osvaldo hit one back in consolation to end Victor Valdes’ run of many hours without conceding but there was no competitive element in this match and Mauricio Pochettino could only look on in wonder at the sheer brilliance of the opponent.

Earlier on Saturday, Deportivo La Coruna failed to bury their game when they had the chance and they paid a hefty price as Diego Castro scored a late equaliser to salvage a 1-1 draw for Sporting de Gijon at the Riazor. Aythami put the hosts in front early on and Deportivo were dominant in the first half but they could not find a second goal. Manuel Preciado’s team did not give up hope and pressed higher up the field in the second half, for which they eventually reaped their reward.

Athletic Bilbao beat Levante 1-2 at the Ciutat de Valencia thanks to two goals from set-pieces. Igor Gabilondo scored a stunning free-kick early on against the run of play and, even though Levante equalised thanks to rising start Felipe Caicedo, poor marking allowed Javi Martinez to head in a Gabilondo cross midway through the second half. The goals were the only clear chances Athletic created and Luis Garcia Plaza is left to lament his side’s failure to assert their dominance.

It was not the complete performance but Villarreal continue to impress in the final third and the quality of their forwards and attacking midfielders shone through as they consigned Real Mallorca to a 3-1 defeat at the Madrigal. Jonathan De Guzman initially equalised after Santiago Cazorla gave Juan Carlos Garrido’s side an early lead but Giuseppe Rossi capped off a dazzling display with a penalty and Nilmar ended his dry patch with a second half goal to hand the Yellow Submarine all three points.

Valencia broke back into the top four with a last gasp 1-2 win over Real Sociedad at Anoeta on Saturday. A glaring error from Chilean keeper Claudio Bravo allowed Aritz Aduriz steal in to score the winner in second half stoppage time when the game was heading for a draw. Valencia were the better team and deserved the win after shrugging off the early set-back of Xabi Prieto’s penalty to level through Tino Costa and then pressing on in search of victory.

Osasuna were held to a 0-0 at the Reyno de Navarra by bottom of the league side Real Zaragoza on Sunday. Jose Antonio Camacho’s team had plenty of chances to win the game against a very defensive minded Aragonese outfit but they were denied, among other chances, by two Leonardo Ponzio goal-line clearances.

Getafe will head into the festive period in good cheer after beating Almeria 2-3 at the Juegos Mediterraneos in their final league fixture of 2010. Jose Luis Oltra’s men stole a march on their opponent by surging into a two-goal first half lead thanks to strikes from Kala Uche and Leandro Ulloa, but Getafe were dominant after Almeria’s second goal and Manu del Moral, Miku and Derek Boateng all got on the score sheet to complete a gratifying comeback. 

Three goals from set-pieces gave Atletico Madrid a comfortable 0-3 win over Malaga at the Rosaleda on Sunday, condemning Manuel Pellegrini’s side to a place in the relegation zone for the duration of the winter break. Malaga were defensively woeful again at home, leaking two goals to Tiago and one to Alvaro Dominguez and their attacking impotency gave them no options to get back in the game having fallen behind early on.

Real Madrid squeezed three points out of Sevilla with a 1-0 win at the Santiago Bernabeu this weekend. It was an ugly, hotly-contested encounter, which will be remembered more for the bad blood on the touchline and ugly fouls on the pitch than attractive football, which was distinctly lacking on both sides. Ricardo Carvalho’s harsh dismissal at the start of the second half looked to have prejudiced Real’s chances but a solo goal from Angel di Maria eventually decided the game in the home side’s favour and Mouhamadou Dabo was sent off in the closing minutes to level the playing field.

Racing Santander and Hercules concluded La Liga football in 2010 with a dull 0-0 draw at the Sardinero on Monday night. The game threw up very few chances but Hercules substitute Javier Portillo came the closest to scoring when he hit the post late in the second half.