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On Saturday evening, three matches of the third round of the Spanish championship ("La Liga") were played again. In Barcelona, the probably first surprise of the new season was recorded - the Royal Madrid "Real" club lost 0-1 to "Espanyol," who barely avoided relegation from the top league last season, and became the leaders of the Spanish championship after this victory.
Barcelona 1 - 0 Madrid 41' [1 - 0]
The match in Barcelona was quite chaotic. Already in the 31st minute, the hosts had a chance to take the lead, but Raul Tamudo failed to convert an 11-meter penalty. However, "Espanyol" managed to go ahead just ten minutes later after Maxi Rodriguez's shot. In the 50th minute of the match, a penalty of eleven meters was awarded to "Espanyol," but this time Brazilian Ronaldo failed to score.
In the 74th minute, a red card was shown to "Real" newcomer Walter Samuel, and already during added time, Michel Salgado was sent off the field for elbowing. It is worth noting that the referee showed 7 yellow cards and 2 red cards in this match.
From the substitutes' bench to the 55th minute of the match, the star of the royal club, David Beckham, watched the game, later replaced Juanfran. It is believed that the team's coach decided not to let Beckham on the field from the start of the match due to his poor performance in the Champions League match against Bayer Leverkusen, which "Real" lost 0-3.
3 - 1 San Sebastian 37' [1 - 0] 51' [2 - 0] 72' [3 - 0] 83' [3 - 1] (11-meter penalty)
In the other matches that took place yesterday, the defending Spanish champions "Valencia" defeated San Sebastian's "Real Sociedad" 3-1. In these matches, "Valencia" continued to terrorize opponents with their new and seemingly effective weapon - headshots.
All three goals in yesterday's match were scored with the head, and the hero of the match was Italian Marco Di Vaio, who, despite missing several opportunities at the start of the match, scored two goals with his head. After coming on as a substitute, Mista scored with a headshot, making the score 3-0.
Real Sociedad scored a consolation goal after "Valencia" newcomer Marcus Caneira used his hand to stop Karpin's shot, and after discussions with the players, the referee awarded an eleven-meter penalty, which was successfully converted by Mikel Arteta, who returned to Spain this year after playing for Glasgow Rangers in recent years. This was Arteta's first goal upon his return to Spain. The victory of "Valencia" was slightly overshadowed by the injury of the team's star Pablo Aimar, whose seriousness will be determined after the necessary tests.
Pamplona 3 - 2 Seville 33' [0 - 1] 53' [1 - 1] 63' [1 - 2] 70' [2 - 2] (own goal) 82' [3 - 2]
In the third Saturday matches, Pamplona's "Osasuna," who have been unbeaten so far, defeated Seville's "Real Betis" 3-2, although the losing team was ahead twice in the game. The winning goal was scored in the 82nd minute by Osasuna's newcomer Savo Milosevic, making it his fourth goal in three "La Liga" matches.
Today, the remaining seven matches will be played. The most interesting match is expected to take place in Madrid, where local "Atletico" will host the "Barcelona" team.
