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La Liga Weekly: Madrid win El Clasico, Atletico extend imperious form, late goals galore

It was yet another scintillating week of football in La Liga, with late goals and drama aplenty.

Here’s a look at everything that went down on Matchday 11.

Bellingham inspires comeback win in Clasico

The biggest game in Europe was Barcelona’s clash against Real Madrid at the Olimpic Stadium on Saturday.

The home side started on the front foot and took the lead through Ilkay Gundogan in the sixth minute.

Fermin Lopez then hit the post as the Blaugrana took control of the game in the opening period.

The introduction of Eduardo Camavinga and Luka Modric in the second half shifted the momentum, but the equaliser came out of nowhere.

Jude Bellingham, man-marked by Gavi throughout the game, found space 30 yards from goal and struck an absolute howitzer into the top corner.

Both sides had half-chances to win the game, but it seemed like we were going to witness a share of the spoils.


In the second minute of injury time, Bellingham was at it again. A cross from the right by Dani Carvajal took a touch of Modric before falling perfectly into the Englishman’s path.

The 20-year-old’s finish was never in doubt, and the script that had unfolded was unbelievable.

Bellingham remains at the top of the goalscoring charts after taking his tally to ten with this brace.

Madrid remain at the summit, ahead of Girona on goal difference. Barcelona fall to fourth.

Atletico make it six wins in a row

Atletico Madrid made it six league wins in a row and 14 consecutive victories at home with a 2-1 success over Deportivo Alaves on Sunday night.

Diego Simeone’s men were on top from the first whistle and were looking particularly threatening down their left-hand side.

The goal came in the 26th minute when left wing-back Rodrigo Riquelme collected a cross from Alvaro Morata, beat his man and finished high into the net for his first goal for the club.

It was 2-0 in injury time before the break when Koke’s long ball found Morata, who still had a lot to do.

The Spaniard kept his calm, got his head up and beat his marker before curling a left-footed effort into the far corner.

Alaves did get into the game in the second half but didn’t test Jan Oblak in the Atleti goal.

The consolation goal for the visitors came in the sixth minute of injury time through Ander Guevara. They were unfortunately not left with any time to score an equaliser.

Atletico are now third in the table. If they win their game in hand against Sevilla, they will leapfrog both Girona and Real Madrid to the top.

Girona continue fairytale with last-gasp win over Celta Vigo

Girona have been a revelation this season, and they remained second in the table with a 1-0 home win over Celta Vigo on Friday.

Michel’s men dominated possession and had 12 attempts at goal, but they were extremely wasteful with their finishing.

After a pretty dull first half, Girona created some excellent openings in the second period, the best falling to Yan Couto and substitute Juanpe. Neither man was able to hit the target.

The winner came in the first minute of injury-time through Yangel Herrera, who nestled a curling effort into the corner from just outside the box.

Around the grounds

Almeria remain rooted to the bottom of the table following a 2-1 loss at home to Las Palmas this weekend.

The game seemed destined for a draw, but the visitors took all three points in the fourth minute of injury time through Sory Kaba.

Real Sociedad were the victims of yet another late goal, as Rayo Vallecano salvaged a point in the 91st minute through Bebe.

Mikel Oyarzabal’s brace had given Sociedad a 2-1 lead after Andul Mumin had opened the scoring for the hosts.

Alex Berenguer scored in the seventh minute of added time as Athletic Bilbao clawed back to a 2-2 draw against Valencia at home.

Real Betis also netted in injury time, as Isco scored to make it 2-1 against Osasuna.

Sevilla came from 2-0 away at Cadiz to earn a point, with goals from Lucas Ocampos and Ivan Rakitic.

Granada were unable to complete a comeback against Villarreal in a 3-2 loss at home. The hosts were 3-0 down before scoring twice but found the third goal to be elusive.

Real Mallorca and Getafe played out a goalless draw in the only other game of the weekend.

Player of the week

The headlines this weekend were stolen again by Bellingham, who scored a second-half brace to win Madrid all three points in his first El Clasico outing.

The Englishman has had the Midas touch since joining from Borussia Dortmund this summer and looks completely at home in the Madrid shirt.

He deservedly won the 2023 Kopa Trophy on Monday and looks set to win many more accolades over the next decade.

Looking ahead

Barcelona’s road to recovery starts in tricky fashion, as Xavi’s men travel to Real Sociedad next weekend.

Madrid host Rayo Vallecano at the Santiago Bernabeu, while their neighbours Atletico travel to Las Palmas.

Almeria and Granada visit Alaves and Valencia respectively, while Celta Vigo host Sevilla.

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