Spanish strikers in vogue and a contrast of fortunes in Madrid

This week saw Atletico win, Barcelona draw and Real Madrid lose to give Diego Simeone a major boost going into next weekend’s fixtures. The final Champions League spot has seen Celta take control but Villarreal are just one point behind them now. Deportivo hold onto sixth place despite Sevilla’s win while Eibar, Athletic Club and Valencia are just two points adrift Victor Sanchez’s team. At the bottom it remains a game of fine margins as Rayo Vallecano slip into the Bottom 3 but are only three points off 12th-placed Espanyol.

The Winners

Atletico lay down a marker against Athletic Club

There are stark contrasts in the atmosphere surrounding the two big sides from Madrid and it’s Diego Simeone’s men that are reigning supreme. There was a sense before the season began that Atletico Madrid wouldn’t be able to match Real Madrid and Barcelona; be it due to those said two having stronger squads or Atletico struggling to bed in another influx of new players. Whatever the reasons were, they’ve proven everyone wrong again.

At the weekend they came up against a very strong Athletic Club side, one that Ernesto Valverde deserves credit for turning around after a disappointing early run. They matched and even bested Simeone’s men for large parts of the encounter but despite taking the lead couldn’t derail an Atletico team unbeaten in 14 matches [all competitions].

Uncharacteristically poor defending at a set piece allowed Laporte to tap home from a corner to give Athletic the lead. It sparked Simeone’s charges into life and they themselves then scored from a corner just as Valverde was preparing his half-time speech. It was Saul’s 3rd goal of December, proving to be able replacement for the injured Tiago.

There are no prizes for guessing who scored the winner either. Antoine Griezmann found himself with a yard of space outside the penalty area and he smashed it first time beyond the reach of a sprawling Iraizoz. I don’t believe he got the credit he deserved for scoring 22 league goals last season and despite playing deeper this campaign still has a respectable 8 goals to his name.

Atletico move joint-top and with Barcelona away in Japan, they have a chance to create a bit of a gap in their absence.

Villarreal add another impressive scalp to their collection

It’s been a rollercoaster of a ride for Villarreal fans this term. They’ve experienced the joy of a great start which culminated in them finishing a game week in 1st place - for the first time in their history - but also real lows, as their form after that joyous moment has been largely rotten.

While injuries have certainly played their part in the side losing its rhythm they can’t be used as the sole reason. It simply hasn’t been good enough at times and the fans began to worry with question marks hanging over Marcelino’s head – he only signed a new deal in November! Enter Real Madrid.

It wasn’t a game to make a DVD about but that won’t matter to the Villarreal faithful who will cherish the victory all the same. An error from the usually reliable Luka Modric left the Real defence exposed. Bakambu had the time and awareness to play in Roberto Soldado who slotted it past the on-rushing Keylor Navas. With that goal Soldado became the highest scorer against former teams in La Liga history [17].

The second half showed the battling spirit we had seen from Villarreal earlier on in the season. Real Madrid threw everything at them, including at least five kitchen sinks, but couldn’t break down the yellow brick wall. Mateo Musacchio has returned and looks like he hasn’t missed a day of training. Strong, powerful and a genuine leader; barking orders at his teammates. He did get away with a late challenge on Cristiano but that aside: magnificent.

The rise of the Spanish striker continues..

I only wrote last month that there was a plethora of Spanish talent lighting up La Liga this season. We’re coming up to half way through the season and most of those are still flying high so their achievements deserve even more credit. There’s a stigma attached to the unpredictable in football; people assume it won’t last and can go months before claiming themselves to be right and the self back-patting commences. Not this time though.

Lucas Perez has been nothing short of remarkable this season. Deportivo shocked a lot of people with their draw against Barcelona at Camp Nou but I don’t know why, unless you hadn’t seen much of them under Victor Sanchez. Depor have only lost 2 games this season and both were freak results [vs Sporting and Malaga respectively]. “But I bet they’ve played a lot of easy games” I hear you say? Well, no, quite the opposite. In fact, they’ve faced all of last season’s top 5 with the exception of Real Madrid.

Perez has scored 11 league goals so far; 7 in his last 8, plus is currently on a 6-game scoring streak. His form deserves a lot more credit than it’s receiving and when Spain announce their squad for the next friendly against Romania he should be in it. He deserves to be in it.

Speaking of players deserving to be named or talked about for Spain squad, you can’t ignore the form of Imanol Agirretxe. The spotlight this season was supposed to be on Jonathas, the new signing from Elche, but it’s local man Agirretxe who has stolen all the headlines with an incredible 12 goals in 13 appearances for Real Sociedad.

He has brought a cutting edge to La Real’s attack, one which is having to carry the want-away Carlos Vela more and more each week. What Agirretxe perhaps lacks in terms of natural quality compared to Vela he more than makes up for in attitude and workrate. He’s scoring the goals but is still humble enough to acknowledge the team is the most important. A touching moment was when he went over to celebrate with Jonathas, a man struggling for form but who replaced Vela against Getafe, after the Brazilian provided the assist. If those two can strike up a partnership no one will blink an eyelid at Carlos Vela’s inevitable winter exit.

Where would Rayo Vallecano be without Javi Guerra? The answer is probably bottom of the league. The veteran frontman has popped up with some crucial goals for Paco Jemez’s side and has probably helped disguise the fact the team is very poor. Jemez has a reputation of being quite the magician, forming competitive sides with very little resources, cast-offs from bigger sides and lesser-known leagues but this might be the season he comes undone.

That is meant as no slight on Paco who deserves all the praise he receives and more but it’s hard to keep turning water into wine. Javi Guerra has been phenomenal but his goals haven’t prevented them from sliding into the bottom 3. He has 9 goals for the season but it’d be a tough ask to expect him to maintain that form through till May. There won’t be funds available in January either so if you’re a fan of Rayo or Jemez, you better hope Guerra continues to have the season of his life or face the prospect of playing in La Segunda next season.

Honourable mentions: Jaume Domenech – the best goalkeeper in La Liga this season. Even more amazing is that he started as 4th-choice stopper for Valencia. Konoplyanka – he came on and changed the game for Sevilla against Sporting. The only question remaining is: why doesn’t Emery start him every week? Las Palmas – Depleted in defence they withstood what Betis had to throw at them before scoring in stoppage time. Granada – a massive victory away to fellow strugglers Levante.

The Losers

Real Madrid’s sloppy start costs them dearly

The pressure is building on Rafa Benitez’s reign at Real Madrid with each passing week. Fans took great delight in seeing Barcelona drop points and saw this as a perfect opportunity to close the gap ahead of their return from the World Club Championship. The first half display against Villarreal was unacceptable and it ultimately cost them a share of the spoils.

There needs to be some blame laid at the feet of Rafa Benitez. He isn’t the sole reason behind everything going wrong at the club but the side looked disorganised from the start against Villarreal and there was no obvious set-up. Allowing Cristiano and Bale to play largely central makes no sense as you’re then asking the fullbacks to bomb forward. Casemiro is a very capable defensive midfielder but he can’t cover two fullbacks on his own as it seemed he was expected to.

Ancelotti managed to find a way to get James, Bale, Cristiano and Benzema in the same side and for it to work. The personnel is largely the same behind those four, if not better, yet it looks as solid as a house held together by sticky back plastic. It’s time for Benitez to demonstrate he isn’t a mere puppet on a string and play people in the position that benefits the side the most.

Gareth Bale created the best chances for Real Madrid but has to be deployed out wide. Ideally on the left but if not – due to Cristiano preferring that position – then on the right. I’d even get Cristiano to cross more often. It’s about creating a team again, not one obsessed with individual merits.

The fact is Real were unlucky/wasteful against Villarreal. On another day they’d have scored 3 or 4 with the chances they created but they didn’t and have slipped even further behind not only Barcelona but now city rivals Atletico as well.

Real Betis continue to blow hot and cold

As Espanyol saw fit to remove Sergio from his role as first team coach at Espanyol, the next person in the firing line appears to be Pepe Mel. He was supposed to return as the saviour but his side’s poor home record has meant the crowd is turning against him. Any more performances like the one against Las Palmas and that date with destiny might come sooner than he’d like.

While home comforts have been hard to come by – just one victory in their 7 games, with alarmingly 4 losses – they’ve been a decent side on the road. In their 8 matches so far they’ve won 4, drawn 2 and before yesterday had only lost to Real Madrid. They made it 2 losses with a limp and frankly embarrassing display against Las Palmas at the weekend.

Quique Setién has got the Canaries playing again and despite having no central defenders available still managed to grab all 3 points in stoppage time. Adan had been their hero before then, saving a close range shot from Jonathan Viera to keep the score at 0-0. Real Betis struggled without N’Diaye in the centre of midfield and had to make do without the injured Dani Ceballos as well. Over 90 minutes they rarely tested Varas in the Las Palmas’ goal.

Willian Jose’s late winner was worth waiting for as he beautifully controlled a cross with his chest, then brought it down before powering it past Adan to take Las Palmas off the bottom of the table.

Levante hit rock bottom

And replacing them at the bottom of the table is none other than Levante. The initial signs under Rubi were encouraging but the bitter taste a defeat at home to fellow strugglers Granada has left won’t have helped morale. No one expects Levante to match and beat the likes of the top sides in the league but at home, against those also near the bottom, they simply can’t afford to lose.

Granada had Peñaranda to thank for both goals as they distanced themselves from the drop while pushing Levante further into it. Ruben came off his line, then stopped, then came out a little more which gifted Peñaranda the time to slot it past the keeper and give Granada the lead. Levante responded well and equalised 15 minutes later as Simao rose highest to nod home from a freekick.

Rubi has a lot of good ideas going forward but Levante are still getting it wrong when it comes to the defence. They stood off the wily Peñaranda and invited him to shoot, which he did, wrong-footing Ruben and earning all 3 points for his side in the 87th minute.

With no winter break this year Rubi will have to work fast to get his ideas across and improve the general play. You can’t imagine there will be much, if any, money for him to spend in the January transfer window but an injection of youth; some fresh legs might do the side the world of good. At the moment it isn’t looking good for them.

Honourable mentions: Espanyol – their poor start to the season continued against Celta and their coach, Sergio, paid the ultimate price. Sporting Gijon – they’ve lost 6 of their last 8 in the league. They need to turn it around or they’ll get dragged into the relegation fight too. Jose Luis Gonzalez Gonzalez – “Who?” I hear you say. His decision to send off Orban and give Eibar a penalty was as bad as you’ll see in a major European league this year.