Barcelona: Atletico Madrid’s turnaround under new coach Diego Simeone was highlighted by a first away victory in the Spanish league with a 4-0 rout of Real Sociedad thanks to Radamel Falcao’s hat trick on Saturday.
Atletico, unbeaten in three games under Simeone, caught a lackluster Sociedad flatfooted in the opening moments of both halves to go up 2-0 as rain fell steadily on Anoeta Stadium.
Falcao stroked home a spot kick to give the visitors the lead just three minutes in following Vadim Demidov’s booking for a handball inside the area, and strike partner Adrian Lopez volleyed in his own rebound after Sociedad goalkeeper Claudio Bravo blocked his header in the 47th.
Falcao then caught Bravo off his line with an exquisite chip shot from outside the area in the 83rd, and the former Porto star sealed Sociedad’s first loss in eight league fixtures with a goal in stoppage time by slicing in a pass from substitute Koke Resurreccion.
“(Falcao) is very good at shaking his marker,” Simeone said. “He adapts to any situation.”
The Colombia striker, who leads Atletico with 14 goals in league play this season, also scored twice in last week’s 3-0 win over Villarreal.
Simeone, who as a midfielder helped Atletico win its last league title in 1996, thanked all of his players for their effort, saying they “put the team first.”
Under former coach Gregorio Manzano, Atletico had a record of one draw and six losses away from home in league play to start the season. Atletico has collected seven of nine possible points since Simeone’s arrival and sits just four points out of fourth place, the last spot that earns Champions League qualification.
“There is no special explanation needed to explain what happened,” Sociedad coach Philippe Montanier said. “Atletico was simply better.”
Elsewhere, Espanyol overcame a depleted front line to defeat Granada 3-0 at home, while 10-man Sevilla drew 1-1 at Real Betis in the first Seville derby in nearly three years.
With injured strikers Sergio Garcia and Alvaro Vazquez unavailable, Mauricio Pochettino turned to his midfield to produce goals.
Raul Baena put Espanyol in front with a header in the 26th and playmaker Joan Verdu added a second from the penalty spot after Vladimir Weiss was fouled by Allan Nyom just before halftime.
Substitute Rui Fonte capped the victory with a goal in the 80th by tapping in a free kick by Ndri Romaric that had come off the crossbar.
Espanyol’s fifth game without a loss lifted it into fifth place in the standings.
Before the match Espanyol unveiled a statue of Dani Jarque, the former captain who died of a heart attack in 2009, at Cornella-El Prat Stadium.
“The match may have looked like a walk in the park but it was far from it,” Pochettino said. “Today was special for us to pay tribute to our eternal captain.”
At Benito Villamarin Stadium, Benat Etxebarria scored Betis’ 26th-minute opener when he curled a free kick over the defensive wall and away from a diving Javi Varas into the left corner of the net.
Sevilla scored a deserved equalizer through Alvaro Negredo’s header in the 41st, but Marcelino Garcia’s team could not avoid extending its winless run to five consecutive games after Federico Fazio was sent off with his second yellow card in the 69th.
Also, Getafe dealt Racing Santander its first loss in six weeks since the exit of coach Hector Cuper with a 2-1 comeback win secured by Nicolas “Miku” Fedor in the 83rd minute.
League leader Real Madrid hosts the in-form Athletic Bilbao on Sunday before second-place Barcelona visits Malaga. Barcelona then hosts Madrid on Wednesday in the second leg of their Copa del Rey quarterfinal after winning the away leg 2-1.
Also on Sunday, it’s: Osasuna vs. Valencia; Rayo Vallecano vs. Mallorca; and Levante vs. Zaragoza.
Sporting Gijon is at Villarreal on Monday in a matchup of teams looking to escape the relegation zone.
Bureau Report
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.