LaLiga 2018-19: Review - Real Madrid and FC Barcelona continued their perfect starts, Sevilla and Espanyol in Champions League spots

By Vedant

Modified Aug 28, 2018 15:32 GMT

Girona FC v Real Madrid CF - La Liga — Sergio Ramos

Real Madrid moved to the top of the LaLiga Santander 2018-19 table as they stormed past last year's surprise package Girona at Estadi Montilivi. A Karim Benzema brace and a goal each from Gareth Bale and Captain Sergio Ramos capped an emphatic 4-1 win for Los Blancos.

The match saw Real Madrid getting 2 penalties in their favour, which were both successfully converted by Ramos and Benzema respectively. Borja Garcia scored the opening goal of the game, it turned out to be a consolation in the end. With this win, Real Madrid went on top of the table with traditional rivals Barcelona just behind on goal difference.

On Saturday's late night kick off, Barcelona edged promoted side Real Valladolid 1-0 at the Estadio Jose Zorrilla. It was a very tough outing for the Catalan outfit, as apart from Valladolid's defensive masterclass, they had to suffer a lot because of the horrible condition of the pitch.

Ousmane Dembele scored the only goal of the match in the 56th minute. After the match, Gerard Pique complained about the potato field pitch. Added to that, he said pitches like these can cause horrible injuries to players. LaLiga President Javier Tebas later confirmed that Real Valladolid will be charged for not meeting the standards of the playing turf.

Real Valladolid CF v FC Barcelona - La Liga — Dembele

Third placed Sevilla couldn't capitalise on their matchday 1 victory over Rayo Vallecano which saw Andre Silva scoring a hat-trick on his league debut. Sevilla were also held to a goalless draw by Villarreal.

Sevilla skipper Sergio Escudero was taken off the pitch as he suffered a fractured shoulder. Two days after Sevilla released their former club captain Nico Pareja, Escudero's injury is a massive blow for them. Pablo Machin has to a lot of work to do.

Enter c — Sevilla captain Escudero leaves the pitch in agony

Espanyol moved to the final Champions League spot as they out-muscled Valencia 2-0 at the RCD stadium. Esteban Granero scored a belter to give Espanyol the lead. Valencia had a good chance to get back into the game, but Diego Lopez parried the ball away from the danger zone.

Borja Iglesias scored the second goal of the game as Leo Baptistao rolled the ball onto his path, and he made no mistake by smashing the ball in the roof of the net. The club's record signing didn't take time to settle.

He joined from Celta Vigo in the summer, and enjoyed a loan spell last season at Zaragoza, scoring 23 goals in 43 appearances. This was a bad result for Valencia who were the favourites coming into this game. They are sitting 16th on the table, with a lot of work to do in order to get their season back on track.

RCD Espanyol v Valencia CF - La Liga — RCD Espanyol vs Valencia CF - La Liga

The 5th and the 6th places are occupied by Athletic club de Bilbao, and newcomers Huesca respectively. The two sides met on the final game of the matchday on Monday. The match ended in a thrilling 2-2 draw.

Bilbao started the first half dominating their rivals, and got their reward as Markel Susaeta scored just after restart, assisted by Iñaki Williams. They Doubled their lead as summer signing Yuri Berchiche scored from an Iñaki Williams cross.

Bilbao was looking comfortable until Jorge Miramon scored to get the promoted side back in the game. Jorge Pulido did quite well to pick him out. Huesca started to dominate, and got their reward 3 minutes before the end of regulation time as Avila scored to steal a point from the Basque side.