La Liga Round-Up: Athletic sunk by Jose Bordalas, Villarreal triumph in derby clash over Valencia

A round-up of all the action from La Liga on Friday and Saturday, with some key results at the bottom of the table.

Real Sociedad secured a huge result for the future of manager Sergio Francisco on Friday night at Anoeta, picking up just their second win of the season. In a competitive game that saw both sides try to outpress each other, La Real took an early lead through a Mikel Oyarzabal penalty in the first half.

Image via ABC

Sevilla levelled things up after a Nemanja Gudelj strike was deflected through a crowded box into the net. The winner came after just 36 minutes though, an error from a Jose Angel Carmona throw-in slipped in Oyarzabal again, who was clinical from the angle. Sevilla could not apply sufficient pressure in the second half to find an equaliser, lifting La Real out of the relegation zone onto nine points.

Girona and Real Oviedo shared the points in a chaotic game that had a bittersweet taste for both Michel Sanchez and Luis Carrion. Federico Vinas opened the scoring with a penalty in the first half, and after Salomon Rondon powered a header from a corner home, it looked as if Carrion was set for his first win.

Cristhian Stuani was sent on to rescue the match, and minutes later converted a penalty to reduce the gap with 25 minutes to go. It was Moroccan midfielder Azzedine Ounahi who nearly won it for them though, after a brilliant strike levelled it in the 83rd minute, and then he won a penalty in the final minute of the match. Stuani whipped the penalty home again to the delirium of Montilivi.

Image via LOF

To Oviedo’s credit, they reacted, with Alberto Reina crucial, swirling a ball to the back post. After Paulo Gazzaniga saved the resulting effort, David Carmo was on hand to prod the equaliser home in the 98th minute. The point keeps Oviedo and Girona bottom with seven points.

Two of the surprise teams of the season locked horns at the RCDE Stadium , in an engrossing clash, as Elche tried to pick their way through an Espanyol press, which aggressively counter-attacked after winning the ball. Both Marko Dmitrovic and Inaki Pena were forced into good saves in the first half, but neither side had the upper hand.

Image via Diario AS

Minutes into the second half, A blistering counter-attack started by Carlos Romero and finished by him in the box gave Los Pericos the lead. That did shift things in their favour, and Elche struggled for chances. The best of them came for Tyrhys Dolan for Espanyol , looping over with the goal gaping in the final moments on the counter.

The result moves Espanyol up to fourth, and hands Elche just their second defeat of the season, allowing the home side to celebrate their 125th anniversary in style.

For the first time ever, Jose Bordalas guided Getafe to a famous victory at San Mames. Despite the return of Nico Williams , Athletic were nullified effectively throughout, and as their frustration grew, Getafe latched onto the spaces opening up at the back. A move down the right forced Unai Simon into a fine save from a Mario Martin header, but Borja Mayoral was alone at the back post to poach the winner.

Image via RTVE

Los Leones were closer to conceding the second than grabbing the equaliser, with Oihan Sancet’s shot the only trouble of note for David Soria. It exacerbates Ernesto Valverde’s issues at Athletic , while Getafe had a happy trip back to Madrid.

Villarreal came out on top in an East Coast derby, after a competitive game at Mestalla. Los Che started the better, with Arnaut Danjuma forcing a good save from Luiz Junior against his former club. Another move down the left forced the Yellow Submarine into a series of blocks after a Jose Gaya cross too.

Image via Eurosport

Yet Villarreal were confident they would get their chances, and after Gerard Moreno converted a penalty at the end of the first half, Santi Comesana made life much more comfortable crashing the box to grab a second. Marcelino Garcia Toral’s team lie third with six wins from 10 games, while Valencia remain mired in midtable, just two points above the relegation zone.