Atlético Turns Madrid Red And White

La Liga’s first major derby of the season saw Atlético Madrid trounce Real Madrid with a shock 5-2 victory to put an end to Xabi Alonso’s run of seven consecutive victories to begin his stint at the club in the league.

That allowed Barcelona to take top spot in the league after coming back from behind to beat Real Sociedad 2-1 at Montjuïc, with Robert Lewandowski taking his goal tally for the season to four as he notched the winner.

Elsewhere, the race for the top four heated up with Villarreal inflicting another defeat on Athletic Club, who have now failed to win any of their five previous fixtures in all competitions. Real Betis also beat Osasuna on Sunday night 2-0, while Elche have kept themselves in the picture, beating Celta Vigo 2-1.

In addition, La Liga saws its first match suspension of the season as Valencia’s clash with Real Oviedo on Monday night was postponed due to a red alert for torrential rain and flooding in the region. That fixture will now be played on Tuesday night.

The storylines of La Liga matchweek seven

MVP of the week

There can only be one candidate in a week in which a striker scores five goals. Atlético Madrid’s Julián Álvarez scored a hat-trick against Rayo Vallecano in midweek and then followed it up with two goals in 12 minutes against Real Madrid to give Atlético a substantial lead in the derby at the Metropolitano. The Argentine missed a penalty for only the second time in his career against Mallorca only a week prior, but showed no sign of nerves as he tucked the ball beyond Thibaut Courtois to record his sixth goal of the season, in only seven games.

Surprise of the week

Some people are just meant to be together, and that is almost certainly the case of Getafe coach José Bordálas and his defender Allan Nyom. The 37-year-old defender rejoined the club last week after his contract expired in the summer, and immediately became a useful option for the Azulones. What many didn’t see coming was where Bordálas would deploy the Cameroonian. Nyom has played 33 games under Bordálas as a right midfielder, 29 as a right-back, 20 as a left-back, five games as a right winger, and one as a left midfielder. Previously in his career he has also played as a central defender. Against Levante, however, he was introduced as a center-forward. With Juanmi Jiménez injured, Adrián Liso with the Spain under 20s squad, and Chrisantus Uche leaving on deadline day, Nyom is the emergency option Bordálas needed.

Stat of the week

Barcelona came back from behind to win for the third time this season in La Liga, which means that Barça has now won nine points from a losing position this season, more than any other team in Europe’s top five league. The Catalans now top the league table after seven games played, capitalizing on Real Madrid’s slip up at the Metropolitano. Hansi Flick’s team did not miss their opportunity, even if it did mean that they had to mount a comeback after former Real Madrid defender Álvaro Odriozola gave Real Sociedad the lead at Montjuïc on Sunday evening. Barcelona responded through Jules Koundé only 12 minutes after Odriozola’s strike, with Robert Lewandowski giving Barcleona the lead just before the hour mark.

Team of the week

Goalkeeper: Paulo Gazzaniga (Girona). Girona’s struggles early on this season haven’t been pleasant for anyone to watch, especially in the case of goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga as he’s repeatedly had to pick the ball out of his own net. On Friday night, however, he produced five impressive stops to deny 1.67 expected goals to keep his first clean sheet of the season and collect Girona’s third point of the season.

Right-back: Pablo Maffeo (Real Mallorca). The Argentine defender was frozen out until his transfer away from Mallorca failed to materialize, and he’s come back with a point to prove. 11 duels won, four completed dribbles and an unbeatable work rate are what was needed to get fans back on side.

Central defender: César Azpilicueta (Sevilla). The veteran soldier of La Liga defenders is looking as reliable as ever at Sevilla. In a young and inexperienced defence, he’s the steady head who could keep the backline composed even on the most intimidating of arenas as is the case at Vallecas.

Central defender: David Affengruber (Elche). Elche has had no problem acclimatizing to the top flight and that is down to the Austrian, who leads the defence and did so again with nine possession recoveries in their win over Celta Vigo. Add in 94% pass completion, and you can see what a crucial cog he is in Eder Sarabia’s machine.

Left-back: Carlos Romero (Espanyol). Espanyol’s left flank has been pivotal to their strong start this season and Romero’s contribution to that was on display at both ends against Girona. Only the man ahead of him, Pere Milla, recorded more shots than Romero’s four, but he was not exposed defensively either.

Right wing: Giuliano Simeone (Atlético Madrid). The embodiment of Atlético Madrid’s fighting spirit on Saturday afternoon, Simeone won 10 duels and won six free-kicks for Atlético. His yellow card for dissent, raging at referee Javier Alberola after a seemingly innocent tackle on Kylian Mbappé, reflected the passion with which Simeone played from start to finish.

Central midfielder: Koke (Atlético Madrid). If ever Atlético needed their leader to turn up, this was the time, and the veteran did so, and not only by setting up Alexander Sørloth for the equalizer to become the youngest Atleti player ever to assist a goal in the fixture. His 93% pass accuracy, alongside three duel wins, and an ongoing battle with Vinícius Júnior, were key to the victory.

Central midfielder: Pedri (Barcelona). With 105 completed passes in the 90 minutes, Pedri dictated the tempo in this game with a whopping 16 passes into the final third and acting as a key outlet for Barça to mount their comeback win over Real Sociedad with everything coming through the man from the Canary Islands.

Left wing: Marcus Rashford (Barcelona). The Manchester United loanee has hit the ground running at Barcelona and claimed his third assist in a Blaugrana jersey against Real Sociedad when he provided the cross for Jules Koundé to head in. His pace and energy, completing two dribbles, and his threat in front of goal, with six shots, was crucial.

Striker: Julián Álvarez (Atlético Madrid). Álvarez became the first man to score a penalty and a free-kick in the same game for Atlético Madrid since Luis Suárez in 2021, and only the second to do so this century. The Argentine is continuing to show why he is of such great value for the Colchoneros on the big occasions.

Striker: Cucho Hernández (Real Betis). Scoring for his third game in a row to become the highest-scoring Colombian in Europe’s top five leagues, Cucho Hernández not only sealed the victory against Osasuna with a finish from the edge of the box, but he also teed up Abde Ezzalzouli to score Betis’ first goal on Sunday night.

Coach: Diego Simeone (Atlético Madrid). His tears on the touchline showed the meaning of the derby win to the coach, who has been subjected to immense criticism in the opening weeks of the season. His tactical preparations completely dismantled an impressive Xabi Alonso side, and much of this victory came from the nous of the man on the sidelines in how he set his team up.