EURO BITES: 4-star Neymar, Cristiano finally scores & Las Palmas press the panic button

The Winners

Neymar takes charge

The football world gasped in horror when the news of Lionel Messi’s injury filtered through, with some predicting that this meant Real Madrid were clear favourites for La Liga because of it. We’ve become accustomed to watching Messi seemingly play 90 minutes of every game whether it be for Barcelona or Argentina, so a long-term injury - in Messi terms - opened the door for Suarez and Neymar to show they were capable of carrying the flag for Barcelona. Now while the Uruguayian international hasn’t been poor, scoring two great goals against Las Palmas, he’s been left in the shade by the Brazilian whose future was brought into question over the summer

He was linked with a move to Manchester United and there are some people in Barcelona who believe Neymar is unsure whether he can become number one in the world while he plays in the same side as Messi. It does seem rather strange that his stance would alter so much after his comments back in May, “I am learning every day from him. It is great what he’s doing for football history. I love Messi, I admire him more every day.” Yet if you believe the reports, he’s decided that he wants to be the star now and won’t wait for Messi to decline. Personally, I find that hard to believe and see it as a standard negotiating tactic to earn an extra million or so per year in his next bumper contract.

The performance he put in against Rayo Vallecano was of the highest standard. We got the lot: goals, tricks and all with a very samba swagger. Poor old Rayo couldn’t contain him as he scored an impressive four goals, providing the assist for Luis Suarez’s late goal for good measure. There’s no doubt Neymar is viewed as the heir to Messi’s throne and his performance against Rayo was one that even the little magician from Argentina would’ve been proud of.

Cristiano silences the critics.. for now

Raul’s all-time goalscoring record for Real Madrid finally fell at the weekend as Cristiano got the goal he’s been desperately waiting for against an impressive Levante side. The Portuguese international didn’t have a game to be placed alongside that of Neymar’s but he deserves a special mention for breaking an impressive record in a relatively short space of time.

Cristiano scored his 324 goals in a mere 310 matches for Real Madrid in all competitions, notching up 105 assists along the way. In the Champions League he’s scored 67 goals with 21 assists in just 65 games. His record in the Copa del Rey is also impressive, scoring 21 in 28 matches. While the debate for who the greatest player of all time is rumbles on, there can be little doubt as to Cristiano Ronaldo being the greatest goalscorer in modern football.

I’ve seen a few call this the beginning of the end for Cristiano after a barren run in front of goal but I think most of that comes from pro Messi or Barcelona camps. The fact remains that a Cristiano at 80% is still better than every footballer - bar one - and, if Real are to win a major trophy this season, he will play a major role in it.

Marco Asensio

While Keylor Navas won all the headlines again as he kept Levante at bay, there was another man on the books of Real Madrid that stole the show in La Liga and his name is Marco Asensio. The attacking midfielder is on loan at Espanyol this season and has already made his mark as he provided the assist for all three of their goals against Betis.

Asensio is coming off the back of an impressive summer campaign with the Spain U19 side where they won the European Championship and he picked up right where he left off with Espanyol. After arriving late in the transfer window he was an unused substitute in the first two games and was then ineligible against his parent club Real Madrid, but in his 5 starts since then he’s produced 5 assists.

He isn’t likely to make the squad at Real Madrid next season so could find himself out on loan again, but if he continues to perform at this level, there could be some very big clubs interested in having Marco - if only temporarily.

Late goal drama

It’s been a bad week for those of you that switched off a game around the 88th minute, thinking it was over, as there were a flurry of late goals - most of which had a huge bearing on the result.

Deportivo looked like throwing away points at home again this season after going 2-0 down against Athletic Bilbao. No prizes for guessing the scorer of the second goal for the Basque side. With 10 minutes to go I don’t think even the most hardened Depor fan had any hope of a comeback until Lucas Perez scored one of the goals of the season. Words can’t do the goal justice so try and find a video of it. He backheeled it up into the air, spun around and smashed the volley past the goalkeeper. This guy isn’t even a striker but that was his 5th of the season! The equaliser came just 9 minutes later as Fede Cartabia produced a delightful cross that Arribas headed in via a De Marcos deflection. Riazor erupted as if the team had won the game; it certainly felt like they had. Brendan Rodgers would’ve admired the character on display.

Celta were another side to score at the death and this time sentence Villarreal to back-to-back defeats, knocking them off top spot in the league. While Nolito is the star man, we shouldn’t overlook the great form Orellana is in either. The winger opened the scoring in the 41st minute with a wonderful strike and when Bailly was sent off one minute into the second half, it should’ve been game over. Answers on a postcard as to what Bailly was thinking as he handled the ball to earn his second yellow card. Villarreal don’t give up and equalised through Denis Suarez, although Sergio Alvarez will be disappointed he didn’t keep it out. Orellana was again the architect of the winning goal in the last minute as his shot cannoned back off the crossbar but fell to Nolito who took a touch before smashing it past Areola and earning the three points for this very impressive Celta side. No sign of the bubble bursting yet.

Atletico Madrid scored a late goal but it only meant there was no way back for Real Sociedad. David Moyes’ players were too busy remonstrating with the referee, arguing they should’ve been awarded a penalty, as Carrasco raced up field to score the winner.

And finally.. Sporting Gijon. 3-1 down at home with 2 minutes of normal time to go and the Granada players were already thinking about what to say in their post-match interview when Nacho Cases popped up to make it a nervy ending. The referee added on 3 minutes but that didn’t stop the aptly named Guerrero (‘warrior’ in English) from equalising in the 95th(?) minute, by which time Granada were down to 9-men. The tide turned for Granada when they brought off youngster Isaac Success who was causing the Sporting backline all kinds of trouble. Take nothing away from Sporting however, as what they might lack in quality compared to some of the bigger sides in the league they certainly make up for in guts.

Honourable mentions: Valencia – I actually attended the game at the Mestalla and Los Che put in a solid performance against a stubborn Malaga side. Andre Gomes makes such a difference to the team. Griezmann – are there any doubts as to whether this guy is world class? He scored a brilliant solo goal against Real Sociedad. Levante – the 3-0 scoreline flattered Real Madrid, but the Valencians simply couldn’t find a way past Navas. Lucas Perez’s goal – seriously, go watch it.

The Losers

Las Palmas’ become the first side to press the panic button

What a weekend it’s been for the Canaries as they produced a drab display against Getafe, complete with some of the worst defending you’ll see in top-flight football. They simply weren’t at the races. Maybe news had filtered down about an imminent change in manager but that would be excuse-making and the reality is this wasn’t their first poor performance of the season. Paco Herrera didn’t see out the weekend as the first team coach; he was sacked and replaced on the same day by Quique Setién.

The sacking seems harsh on the face of it. 13 years outside of the top flight before Paco took over, guiding them to promotion and then being handed a relatively tough fixture list, you felt he deserved a lot more time than 8 games. Maybe something went on behind the scenes as they clearly had a replacement lined up before the weekend. Either way, it seems to be something promoted sides do. It was Cordoba last season and look how well they worked out for them. Patience doesn’t exist in football.

Villarreal

After leading the way in La Liga for the first time in their history they followed it up with back-to-back defeats, both times conceding in the final 10 minutes and both times after going down to 10-men. Centre back Bailly must have thought he was Pau Gasol as he reached up to tip away a ball going over his head. He was shocked by the decision to award him a second yellow card, whereas everyone else was just shocked at what he’d done.

It would be too soon to say the wheels were coming off Villarreal’s charge at the top after two bad results but they are certainly guilty of shooting themselves in the foot at the moment. The loss of Bailly could be offset by the return of Mateo Musacchio next week if all goes to plan. The Argentine defender broke his ankle last season but appears on the verge of a recall to the first team after coming through training unscathed.

Real Betis

Most people had predicted their home form would be key to them staying in the division but it hasn’t been too much of a happy hunting ground for Los Beticos this season. They slumped to a deserved defeat against Espanyol at the weekend and have only managed to pick up 4 points from their 4 home games this term, losing the last 2.

Their away form is another matter altogether as they’ve won 2 and drawn 1 after the crushing defeat at the hands of Real Madrid. They’ll be happy with their overall performance to date but an upturn in their home form could catapult them into contention for a Europa League spot. Dani Ceballos needs to be involved more too, as the youngster is capable of creating the opportunities Ruben Castro needs to get on the scoresheet.

Rayo Vallecano

There are people who admire their way of playing against Barcelona and those that find it naïve. While I respect the principle, I find myself falling into the latter of the two groups.

The best way to beat Barcelona is to attack as their defence is clearly the weakest area of the squad. Valencia showed it last season as they dominated both games by being on the front foot although they ultimately had nothing to show for it as a mixture of wasteful finishing and wonderful goalkeeping meant Barcelona emerged victorious. However you need to have the required quality to play that way to truly punish Barcelona because if you don’t, they’ll rip you to shreds on the counterattack.

It’s all well and good controlling the possession against one of the most renowned passing teams in world football but if you leave yourself as open as Rayo did, you’re only delaying the inevitable. Rayo simply don’t have the players to match Barcelona for 90 minutes. There’s no shame in that and I’m not asking for them to park the bus and hope for the best, no one wants that. But you need to realise that if you’re getting smashed every time you play a certain side then you must change something as it isn’t working. Once? Fine. Twice? Okay. But 4, 5 or 6 times? There’s a moment when admirable becomes ridiculous and we’re at that point for me.

Honourable mentions: Real Sociedad – the team continues to struggle and no one seems the least bit interested in turning it around & they’ve got some tough fixtures coming up. Malaga – they were poor against Valencia, offering very little in the final third. Not helped by a static defence either. Athletic Club and Granada – when you’re near the bottom of the table you simply have to hold onto your leads. Both came away with a draw, snatched from the jaws of victory.