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European and Spanish champions "Barcelona" easily defeated Santander's "Racing" 3-0 away. The guests took the lead in the 18th minute when Cameroonian Samuel Eto'o scored, although until then "Racing" had caused a lot of problems for the Catalans.
"Barcelona" managed to double the score and secure a comfortable end to the match in 84 minutes when Ludovicas Giuly broke through into the penalty area and beat the hosts' goalkeeper Tono. It was this goalkeeper who became the "culprit" of the third goal: for a foul against Eidur Gudjohnsen, he was sent off the field, and Ronaldinho successfully converted the penalty awarded by the referee from eleven meters.
It was more difficult for the Royal Madrid's "Real", who defeated San Sebastian's "Real Sociedad" 2-0 at home. The hosts took the lead in the middle of the second half when Spaniard Jose Antonio Reyes scored the first goal for the Royal club.
Four minutes later, "Real Sociedad" defender Mikel Aranburu was sent off the field and "Real" secured the victory right at the end of the match when David Beckham scored from a counterattack.
"Valencia" continued their one hundred percent start, defeating Madrid's "Getafe" 2-0 at home. The hosts were led forward by Fernando Morientes, demonstrating excellent form, who scored with a header following a pass from the side by Spain's national team goalkeeper Vicente. Although "Getafe" created several opportunities to equalize, the best player of the match, Vicente, was brought down in the penalty area in the middle of the second half and successfully converted the referee's awarded penalty from 11 meters.
As always, the Seville derby was intriguing, where "Sevilla" celebrated a 3-2 victory and continued to lead the Spanish championship. Frederic Kanoute and "Betis" newcomer Rafael Sobis scored two goals each for both teams, but the game-winning goal at the end of the match was scored by "Sevilla" defender Renato.
In other Sunday matches, Valencia's "Levante", Pamplona's "Osasuna", and Barcelona's "Espanyol" won their first points.
Meanwhile, after suffering a humiliating 1-4 home defeat, the fans of "Athletic Bilbao" started demanding the resignation of the club president. In the ranks of the victorious "Atletico," debutant Argentine star Sergio Aguero scored his first goal.
Statistics:
Madrid's "Real" 2 - 0 San Sebastian's "Real Sociedad" 69' [1 - 0] Jose Antonio Reyes 90' [2 - 0] David Beckham 73' Mikel Aranburu was sent off the field ("Real Sociedad")
"Athletic Bilbao" 1 - 4 Madrid's "Atletico" 17' [0 - 1] Maxi Rodriguez 37' [0 - 2] Martin Petrov 64' [0 - 3] Sergio Aguero 86' [1 - 3] Javi Martinez 90' [1 - 4] Luciano Galletti (penalty)
Pamplona's "Osasuna" 2 - 0 Taragona's "Gimnastic" 1' [1 - 0] Pierre Webo 90' [2 - 0] Savo Milosevic
"Racing Santander" 0 - 3 "Barcelona" 18' [0 - 1] Samuel Eto'o 84' [0 - 2] Ludovic Giuly 90' [0 - 3] Ronaldinho (penalty) 90' Tono was sent off the field ("Racing Santander")
Barcelona's "Espanyol" 2 - 1 Vigo's "Celta" 49' [1 - 0] Moises Hurtado 52' [1 - 1] Fabian Canobbio 55' [2 - 1] Jonatas
"Zaragoza" 2 - 0 "Mallorca" 58' [1 - 0] Ewertho 79' [2 - 0] Sergio Garcia 37' Fernando Varela was sent off the field ("Mallorca")
Huelva's "Recreativo" 0 - 1 Valencia's "Levante" 85' [0 - 1] Alexis
"Valencia" 2 - 0 Madrid's "Getafe" 45' [1 - 0] Fernando Morientes 66' [2 - 0] Vicente (penalty)
"Sevilla" 3 - 2 Seville's "Betis" 26' [1 - 0] Frederic Kanoute 40' [1 - 1] Rafael Sobis 52' [1 - 2] Rafael Sobis 58' [2 - 2] Frederic Kanoute 85' [3 - 2] Renato
