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On Saturday, there were no big surprises in the Spanish championship - the favored teams "Sevilla" and "Barcelona" secured victories.
The defending champions "Barcelona" easily defeated Pamplona's "Osasuna" 3-0 at the "Nou Camp" stadium. According to the Spanish media, the young talent Lionel Messi from Argentina and the Brazilian Ronaldinho shone in the match.
Although the hosts failed to break through Osasuna's defense in the first half, L. Messi had two good opportunities - one shot hit the crossbar and the other was saved by the visiting goalkeeper. Just at the start of the second half, the unmarked Cameroonian Samuel Eto'o redirected a corner kick swiftly lifted by Ronaldinho into the goal.
Soon after, S. Eto'o scored his second goal of the match (ninth this season) when he rushed to the rebounded ball, and towards the end of the match, the Frenchman Ludovic Giuly scored a bizarre goal from behind Ronaldinho's back.
However, this victory could come at a cost for Frank Rijkaard, as injuries were suffered by the Brazilian defender Juliano Belletti (knee injury) and the Portuguese national team midfielder Deco (strained muscle).
Seville secured their third victory of the season by defeating "Alaves" 2-0. The first goal was scored in the 27th minute by the Brazilian defender Adriano after a beautiful pass from the Italian Enzo Maresca, and in the 71st minute, E. Maresca doubled the score from a penalty kick earned by J. Saviola.
Tournament table
Saturday's results
Barcelona 3 - 0 Pamplona
46' [1 - 0] S. Eto'o
52' [2 - 0] S. Eto'o
86' [3 - 0] L. Giuly
Seville 2 - 0 Alaves
27' [1 - 0] Adriano
71' [2 - 0] E. Maresca (pen.)
Top goalscorers
1. Samuel Eto'o (Barcelona) - 9 goals
2. Ronaldo (Real Madrid) - 7 goals
3. David Villa (Valencia) - 6 goals
4. Fernando Baiano (Celta Vigo) - 5 goals
5-6. Ivan Riki (Getafe) - 4 goals
5-6. Nene (Alaves) - 4 goals
Sunday's matches
Cadiz - Athletic Bilbao
Celta - Espanyol
Getafe - Zaragoza
Malaga - Betis
Real Sociedad - Deportivo
Villarreal - Mallorca
Racing Santander - Atletico
Real - Valencia
