LaLiga: Iborra's 'hat-trick', Neymar matches Ronaldinho and Cristiano is suffering

THE WINNERS

Sevilla go full Sampaoli

Going into the match against bottom-placed Osasuna, Sevilla were the form side of LaLiga. Not only had they ended the unbeaten run of Real Madrid but they’d also comfortably seen off Celta Vigo and Real Sociedad, both top six contenders, away from home. The hoodoo of being a disaster on the road had been well and truly put it bed, or had it?

Just 15 minutes into the match and Osasuna take the lead. Sergio Leon, arguably their best player this season, swept home a quick move with the Sevilla defence far too static. No need to panic though. Captain Fantastic Vicente Iborra then channelled his inner Paulo Di Canio/Karate Kid to produce a wonderful crane kick volley that unfortunately came back off the post. It did land at Stevan Jovetic’s feet though and he pulled it back for Iborra to make amends and the sides were level. Panic over.

[Report: Iborra makes his mark as Sevilla see off Osasuna]

Iborra then got his second goal of the game but sadly it was in his own net. A cross came in and when he attempted to clear it, he only managed to loop it over Sergio Rico in the Sevilla goal. Osasuna were ahead again. Two minutes later and Iborra completed his hat-trick of sorts, this time in the right net, leaping highest to head home an equaliser after Mario Fernandez had originally saved Wissam Ben Yedder’s effort. Panic over.

Sevilla then took the lead for the first time in the match albeit in controversial circumstances. A corner was headed in at the near post by Franco ‘Mudo’ Vazquez but there was a definite nudge in the back of the defender from Vazquez and the Osasuna players were naturally outraged. Pablo Sarabia then scored another for Sevilla in injury time before Kenan Kodro pulled one back at the death, making it 4-3.

Maybe when Sevilla beat Real Madrid it also passed over that luck. LaLiga proving once again that it’s anything but boring and uncompetitive.

Neymar draws level with Ronaldinho

For casual LaLiga fans a trip to Eibar should be a walk in the park for Barcelona. The small Basque town have a stadium which is similar in size to what most teams in League One and Two in England play in. If you simply look at the final scoreline, 4-0, you’d assume it was a routine win. And to an extent it was, but they were made to work extremely hard for the three points against a tough Eibar side.

The difference in these types of match ups is the individual quality Barcelona can call upon. Lionel Messi was outrageous in the first half – and not too bad in the second either – while Neymar put in one of his best performances of the season. When those two are in the mood it doesn’t leave much margin for error, and less so when Marc-Andre ter Stegen is in inspired form between the sticks as well.

[Report: MSN see Barcelona to victory over Eibar]

[Busquets injury compounds Barca’s midfield woes]

Denis Suarez came on to replace the injured Sergio Busquets forcing Barcelona to field a relatively untried midfield combination of Suarez, Ivan Rakitic and Arda Turan. It was Denis who scored the opener as he drilled in a 20 yard shot into the far corner after Eibar had started much the better of the two sides, restricting the influence of MSN on proceedings. That’s only possible for so long though.

Luis Suarez waited before floating in a wonderful cross that Messi met perfectly to double the lead. The movement and finish from Messi was inch-perfect, as was the cross to be fair. Eibar continued to take the fight to their more illustrious opponents but shot themselves in the foot when Suarez robbed Florian Lejune of the ball before coolly finishing one-on-one to make it 3-0 with just over 20 minutes to go.

Eibar continued to threaten and forced ter Stegen into various smart saves but it was down to Neymar, who has endured a tough time in front of goal, to have the final say. Aleix Vidal broke down the right and sent in a wonderful cross that Paco Alcacer left for Neymar to score his first goal in open play since October. His performance deserved a goal and it moved him level with Ronaldinho on 94 goals for Barcelona but in 43 less appearances than the curly haired magician.

‘Mr Wolf’ cleaning up the mess at Valencia

In Pulp Fiction Vicent and Jules enlisted the help of Mr Wolf to help them deal with a car problem. You see, Mr Wolf has the reputation of making everything look clean, as if nothing bad had ever happened. For Valencia, they have their own Mr Wolf and he’s doing a fantastic job of making everyone forget about the mess at the club right now.

Valencia hadn’t beaten Villarreal in the league since the November 2014 and had lost the last two matches against their local rivals. A trip to the newly named Ceramic Stadium would present a bigger test than the one they’d faced against Espanyol at home. Was that victory a freak result or were Los Che finally beginning to find some traction? While neither is exactly clear just yet, it appears the latter is the most likely.

[The astonishing fee Valencia are paying for Simone Zaza]

Truth be told, it was easier than Valencia could’ve expected. 20-year-old midfielder Carlos Soler is the epitome of where the club has gone wrong in the past, but also the shining light as to its potential future. The obsession with throwing money at a problem instead of turning to one of the best academies in Europe was a major oversight and in Soler, Valencia have a very special player. He oozes class and already leads by example despite only being promoted to the first team last week.

Nani had arguably his best game in a Valencia shirt and it was his cross that found young Soler to slot home the opening goal. Sergio Asenjo then showed why goalkeepers shouldn’t take unnecessary risks as he was robbed of the ball by Santi Mina who made it 2-0 just before half-time. It was comfortable for Valencia, perhaps too comfortable.

For the first time in god knows how long, even Valencia’s defence looked strong. Ezequiel Garay and Eliaquim Mangala looked as solid as a rock, especially the on loan Manchester City man. Villarreal cranked up the pressure in the final 15 minutes or so but couldn’t find a way back into the game and it was Valencia who handed them their first loss in their ‘new’ stadium.

Honourable mentions: Lionel Messi – making football look easy since 2004. Sergio Ramos – continues to find space in the opposition’s penalty area, continues to punish them. Iker Muniain – looked back to his best against Atletico Madrid, constantly being a thorn in their side. Real Sociedad – remain firmly in the hunt for the Champions League spots after another win at the weekend. Antoine Griezmann – scored an absolute rocket but it wasn’t enough to earn his side three points.

THE LOSERS

Cristiano was great in 2016 but disappointing so far in 2017

When you’re one of the best players in the world and you’ve recently picked up both the Ballon d’Or and ‘The Best’ awards for your performances last year, the spotlight is naturally going to be on you. It’s shared equally by those who adore everything you do as well as those intent on picking apart every error and mistake made. It comes with the territory, essentially.

Let’s call a spade a spade: Cristiano has been pretty rubbish in Real Madrid’s last three matches, two of which have ended in defeat. Yes, he scored a penalty against Sevilla but that doesn’t mask his overall poor performance. In the Copa del Rey tie versus Celta Vigo he was equally ineffective and against Malaga at the weekend, probably his worst game of the three despite Madrid’s 2-1 win. Something is wrong with Cristiano.

[Ramos tells Madrid fans: We need support]

[Zidane defends Ronaldo over poor form]

Perhaps I’m being kind, or giving him the benefit of the doubt, but he doesn’t seem his usual self at the moment. Is it father time catching up on him or is it simply a dip in form, or even a minor injury limiting his influence? He squandered far too many chances in the match against Malaga and, maybe frustrated at that, picked the wrong option when Madrid looked to attack.

With injuries mounting up, Real need him to rediscover his best form or that 40-match unbeaten streak will count for nothing.

Villarreal enduring a mini crisis

All is not well in Castellon. Fran Escriba’s side looked set for another tilt at the top four but their recent form has caused many fans to worry, so much so that a few are questioning whether he’s the right man to lead them forward.

Now modern football can be a cut-throat world, we all know this, but the performances in recent weeks simply haven’t been good enough. A draw at home to Toledo in the Copa del Rey was followed by a loss to Real Sociedad in the same competition, eventually going out following a draw in the return leg. A 1-1 draw with Barcelona was sandwiched between those fixtures but a disappointing draw away to Deportivo followed by a home defeat to Valencia are causes for concern.

Winless so far in 2017, the upcoming fixture list isn’t kind either. After Granada they play three of the current top five and Roma twice, only Malaga proving an ‘easier’ fixture in that run up until the end of February. Should things continue in the same vein as in recent weeks, it wouldn’t come as a complete surprise to see Escriba fighting for his future with the Yellow Submarines.

Celta’s cup focus could prove costly

For many sides unable to call upon bucketloads of cash, cup competitions are their best bet of walking away with any silverware. Whilst a league title isn’t impossible – just look at Leicester for proof of that – the odds of winning a knockout competition are far greater.

Celta Vigo head into their quarter final second leg tie with Real Madrid holding a slim yet crucial advantage. The two-legged format isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, myself included, but there’s still every chance they’ll manage to get through to the semi-finals this time around, matching their achievement of last season in the same competition.

Yet it reaches a point, as it does for all sides in similar situations to Celta, where they need to prioritise certain competitions, whether that’s because the squad isn’t strong enough or simply due to personal preference. Let us not forget that Celta remain in the Europa League too, a remarkable feat considering how light their squad is.

Against Real Sociedad they essentially threw in the towel before kick off with their line-up. I respect and understand their decision but it’s why they are in the losers section today. I only hope, for their sake, it’s worth it come Wednesday night.

Honourable mentions: Malaga – four losses on the bounce now but they were unlucky against Real Madrid. Granada – another loss and they now find themselves eight points from safety. Las Palmas – indiscipline on and off the pitch is threatening to undo all their progress. Gonzalo Escalante – it was his unnecessarily robust challenge that injured Busquets.