Sociedad deliver unlikely thrashing over sub-par Girona

januzaj

Our La Liga game of the week sees us take a look back at Real Sociedad’s unlikely 5-0 rout of a Girona side that has otherwise adapted well to life in the top flight of Spanish football.

The two sides came into the tie in startlingly different form, with European football outsiders Girona travelling to a Sociedad side that sat 14th in the table.

However, any expectations that this would be a routine win on their pursuit of European football were dashed in the first half – Sergio Canales’ whipped in-swinger of a cross unintentionally hitting the target in the 11th minute as he himself hit three goals and 34 points for the season.

Sociedad have looked troubled at times this season, delivering inconsistent performances that have seen them occupy an uninspired bottom half of the table for much of the campaign.

However, any suggestions that there might be a re-occurrence of their patchy form was put to bed when Adnan Januzaj doubled the hosts lead on 35 minutes – springing the Girona offside trap before calmly rounding the keeper and slipping the ball into an unguarded net.

The Belgian international is yet to live up to the hype since bursting onto the scenes during the Moyes era but he highlighted what he is capable of at his best here, his goal seeing him earn a spot in our team of the week.

Stung at being two down at the break, Girona new they had to come out fighting in the second half.

However, a goal was not forthcoming and opportunities arose for Sociedad to exploit the spaces left in behind by the visitors.

On 71 minutes, Mikel Ozarzabal more or less put the came to bed – the Girona offside line again being outfoxed as the 20-year-old winger blasted home from a one-on-one situation.

Girona now clearly deflated, the Spaniard took advantage again late on as he once again broke in behind before stoking into an unguarded net following a Bono error.

The demolition finally reached its conclusion, as Juanmi tapped in a fifth in the 88th minute to round off a comprehensive victory for the hosts.

His goal was only his sixth of the campaign, in what was has been a frustrating campaign for the striker.

Putting him on 26 points for the season, he will be hoping it can be the beginning of an end of season bounce in form.

The surprise result saw Sociedad rise to 13th in the table on 37 points, whilst Girona failed to capitalise on Sevilla’s defeat to Celta Vigo and remain eighth in the league.

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La Liga team of the week

aspas

La Liga threw up some surprising results last weekend, as well as one unsurprising star performance. Check out our team of the week, here!

Daniel Gimenez, Real Betis – seven points

A clean sheet in his first game of the season in Betis colours saw Gimenez’s team on their way to 2-0 win over Eibar.

His exploits in this rare appearance will have him hoping he can vie for a more regular berth in the team.

Victor Laguardia, Alaves – nine points

He may have only secured 21 points over the entirety of the season but Laguardia’s stella performance on the weekend saw him land a perhaps unexpected place in our team of the week.

Having given his side the lead in the first half, Laguardia then went on to keep a clean sheet to boot as his side ran out 2-0 winners.

Antonio Barragan, Real Betis – seven points

In what are perhaps unusual statistics for a defender, Barragan has bagged five assists this season but contributed to just seven clean sheets.

One of them came this weekend for former Liverpool man who is on loan from Middlesbrough- as he played a key role in a resolute performance for Betis.

Ruben Duarte, Alaves – five points

Another to benefit from Alaves’ clean sheet, Duarte is now on eight for the season – seeing him land on 21 points come the final whistle.

The win saw Alaves end a poor run of form as they appear to be safe from any residual threat of relegation.

Raul Navas, Sociedad – five points

Having started his 14th game of the campaign, Navas secures his fifth clean sheet – a fact that highlights how assured he can be when on his game.

Sociedad now sit in 12th place in the table and will be hoping the win is a platform from which they can launch an end of season burst from.

Pablo Hernandez, Celts Vigo – six points

The Celta midfielder marked his 25th game of the season with two assists as his team mate Iago Aspas led them to an inspired win this weekend.

Now 31, the Chilean International has failed to grab an assist to this point, but has secured 25 points.

Adnan Januzaj, Real Sociedad – six points

The Belgian midfielder bagged his side’s second goal in their 5-0 win as he hit three goals and 25 points for the season.

His career may have underwhelmed since he burst onto the scenes at Manchester United but there is now doubting his raw ability.

David Zurutuza, Real Sociedad – six points

Zurutuza secured two assists in his team’s comprehensive victory, an outstanding feat considering he only came onto the pitch in the 64th minute.

The French-born Spanish midfielder has been largely peripheral this season but will home that this performance can but him in the manager’s mind as an inconsistent season enters its final throes.

 Sergio Canales, Real Sociedad – five points

The former Madrid and Valencia man has made Sociedad his home since arriving in 2014.

The attacking midfielder opened the scoring for his side as they recorded a resounding victory over Girona.

Lionel Messi, Barcelona – 14 points

The iconic attacker netted a hat-trick in his side’s 3-1 victory over Leganes to put Barca 11 points clear of Atletico.

With 29 goals now to his name, could the Argentine be on the brink of a record sixth Ballon d’Or?

Iago Aspas, Celta Vigo – 14 points

The Spanish international has exemplified how perfect a fit he and Celta are this season, scoring a hat-trick against Sevilla to put him 19 goals for the season.

With 78 points to his name this campaign, it will be intriguing to see just how high he can finish.

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