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Today (Sunday) the matches of the 3rd round of the Spanish championship ("La Liga") were played. Real Madrid players experienced their third consecutive defeat - second in the Spanish championship and another in the UEFA Champions League, losing to Espanyol Barcelona, while last year's champion Barcelona stumbled against Atletico Madrid. The Royal Club on Sunday in Barcelona had to admit the minimal advantage of "Espanyol" at home. The only goal of the match was scored by Catalan defender Daniel Jarque after a penalty kick by Iván de la Peña. At the end of the match, two Real Madrid newcomers were forced to leave the field - minutes before the end of the match, defender Sergio Ramos received a second yellow card for a foul against the impressive De la Peña, while Julio Baptista saw a red card in added time right in front of his eyes. Last Saturday, Real Madrid had to admit the superiority of Celta Vigo, who returned to the highest division with a score of 3-2, and on Wednesday they were crushed 3-0 by Lyon in the CL match. This defeat strongly resembles the beginning of last season, after which Jose Antonio Camacho had to resign from his position. Then Real Madrid lost 3-0 to Bayer Leverkusen in the UEFA Champions League, and later lost to Espanyol with the same result of 1-0. The defending Spanish champions Barcelona took an early lead in the match against Atletico - in the 6th minute Samuel Eto'o put the ball into the net, but just over 10 minutes later Fernando Torres responded with a precise shot. At the beginning of the second half, Atletico's Serbian player M.Kezman put his team in the lead. Although in the 66th minute Atletico player Pablo was sent off the field, Barcelona failed to secure even a point - the home team clinched a victory with a score of 2-1. An intense match took place in Vitoria, where Alaves had to admit the superiority of Getafe with a score of 3-4. Three goals (two from the penalty spot) were scored by Brazilian Nene for the hosts, but that was not enough and Getafe for the first time in the club's history took the top spot in the Spanish championship. However, they are not the sole leaders. The fate of the match in Bilbao was decided at the very end - in the 84th minute Malaga took the lead with a goal from Edgar, and although in the 90th minute it seemed that Athletic Bilbao had equalized with a header from Mari Lacruzas, in added time the visitors snatched victory with a goal from Antonio Hidalgo, concluding a great counterattack. Villarreal, who have not yet won a victory this year in the UEFA Champions League, had to settle for a draw away against league debutants Cadiz. Although the guests took the lead first in the 38th minute with a goal from Jose Mari, the hosts managed to equalize with a goal from Oli. Celta Vigo missed the chance to become the sole leader, losing at home to Racing Santander. The first goal this season for Racing Santander was scored by goalkeeper Francisco Casquero with a beautiful long-range shot. Osasuna secured their second victory out of three possible ones, this time with a minimal score at home against the injury-riddled Sevilla. The only goal in the 63rd minute after a beautiful play with forward Pierro Webo was scored by goalkeeper David Lopez. Shortly after, the hosts were reduced to 10 men, as Rafael Clavero received a red card for a foul on Jesus Navas. In added time, the same fate befell Sevilla player Kepa. A lackluster match took place in Seville, where Betis drew 0-0 with Zaragoza. Opportunities to score were missed by Ricardo Oliveira and Xisco for the hosts, while Zaragoza's forward Savio failed to snatch a victory in the match and help Zaragoza secure their first win of the season. Saturday's match results: "Alaves" 3 - 4 "Getafe" 6' [1 - 0] Nene (pen.) 8' [1 - 1] David Belenguer 13' [2 - 1] Nene 26' [2 - 2] Riki 38' [2 - 3] Riki 50' [2 - 4] Mario Andres Pernia 66' [3 - 4] Nene (pen.) "Athletic" 1 - 2 "Malaga" 86' [0 - 1] Edgar 90' [1 - 1] Jose Maria Lacruz 90' [1 - 2] Antonio Hidalgo "Cadiz" 1 - 1 "Villarreal" 38' [0 - 1] Jose Mari 45' [1 - 1] Oli "Celta" 0 - 1 "Racing" 60' [0 - 1] Francisco Javier Casquero "Osasuna" 1 - 0 "Sevilla" 63' [1 - 0] David Lopez 73' Rafael Clavero sent off ("Osasuna") 90' Kepa sent off ("Sevilla") "Betis" 0 - 0 "Zaragoza" "Espanyol" 1 - 0 "Real" 68' [1 - 0] Daniel Jarque 88' Sergio Ramos sent off ("Real") 90' Julio Baptista sent off ("Real") "Atletico" 2 - 1 "Barcelona" 6' [0 - 1] Samuel Eto'o 18' [1 - 1] Fernando Torres 47' [2 - 1] Mateja Kezman 66' Pablo sent off ("Atletico")
