Spanish Primera Division – Recap – January 18-21, 2013
FC Barcelona were upset by Real Sociedad, Real Madrid crushed Valencia, and Atletico Madrid won again in the Spanish Primera Division on January 18th-21st.
Barca lose at Sociedad
There’s no need to panic but Barcelona were a bit flat Saturday at Sociedad. Barcelona did have an early 2-0 lead but Sociedad stormed back with two goals in the second half. A closer look at the match shows Barca’s Gerard Pique was sent off in the 56th minute which allowed Sociedad to take advantage. Barcelona have a 18-1-1 record and seven point lead at the top of the table.
Real Madrid dominate Valencia
In a La Liga season that’s been a letdown, Real Madrid did flex their muscle on Sunday with a five-star performance. They are still way back of Barcelona but Real Madrid will set their sights on second place. Finishing behind their Madrid rivals (Atletico) would be embarrassing considering the amount of resources that each club has at their disposal.
Atletico still in second
The lesser known team from Madrid won again to maintain their grip on second place. The key to Atletico’s run is their stingy defense which has only conceded 18 goals through 20 matches and the world-class striker Radamel Falcao. Atletico may not finish second by the end of the season but they are in great position to earn one of the UEFA Champions League spots for next season.
Away teams struggle
It was a good set of matches for home teams as six won and all but one (Valencia) got results. It’s not unusual for home teams to do well but a look at the bottom half of the table shows the struggle for away teams to win.
Results
Friday, January 18, 2013
Espanyol 3-2 Mallorca
Saturday, January 19, 2013
Granada 2-0 Rayo Vallecano
Real Sociedad 3-2 FC Barcelona
Getafe 1-1 Sevilla
Malaga 1-1 Celta Vigo
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Osasuna 2-1 Deportivo La Coruna
Real Valladolid 2-0 Real Zaragoza
Atletico Madrid 2-0 Levante
Valencia 0-5 Real Madrid
Monday, January 21, 2013
Real Betis 1-1 Athletic Bilbao
Table
| CLUB | P | W | D | L | GD | PTS |
| Barcelona | 20 | 18 | 1 | 1 | 43 | 55 |
| Atletico | 20 | 15 | 2 | 3 | 24 | 47 |
| Real Madrid | 20 | 12 | 4 | 4 | 30 | 40 |
| Betis | 20 | 11 | 2 | 7 | 1 | 35 |
| Malaga | 20 | 9 | 5 | 6 | 13 | 32 |
| Rayo | 20 | 10 | 1 | 9 | -9 | 31 |
| Valencia | 20 | 9 | 3 | 8 | -5 | 30 |
| Levante | 20 | 9 | 3 | 8 | -5 | 30 |
| R Sociedad | 20 | 8 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 29 |
| Valladolid | 20 | 8 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 28 |
| Getafe | 20 | 7 | 5 | 8 | -6 | 26 |
| Sevilla | 20 | 6 | 5 | 9 | -5 | 23 |
| R Zaragoza | 20 | 7 | 1 | 12 | -9 | 22 |
| Athletic | 20 | 6 | 4 | 10 | -16 | 22 |
| Espanyol | 20 | 5 | 6 | 9 | -9 | 21 |
| Granada | 20 | 5 | 5 | 10 | -11 | 20 |
| Celta Vigo | 20 | 5 | 4 | 11 | -5 | 19 |
| Osasuna | 20 | 4 | 6 | 10 | -5 | 18 |
| Mallorca | 20 | 4 | 5 | 11 | -16 | 17 |
| Deportivo | 20 | 3 | 7 | 10 | -18 | 16 |
