Nine-man Getafe sink Villarreal

Villarreal dropped valuable points in the championship race as they lost 1-0 away to nine-man Getafe on Saturday with Juan Albin scoring in the dying minutes.

This was billed as a clash between two in-form sides who like to play open and attacking football but it turned into a disappointment with chances few and far between.

Getafe had the better of the opening exchanges and Jaime Gavilan had a shot across goal claimed comfortably by keeper Diego Lopez.

Villarreal badly missed the suspended Giuseppe Rossi in attack but they grew as the first half went on.

In the run-up to half time the sprightly Nilmar skipped past Daniel Diaz and was hauled down with the defender given a red card.

Villarreal struggled to make their extra-man count and the game was fizzling out when Getafe’s Albin struck with two minutes to go. He celebrated by taking off his shirt and was sent-off for his second yellow card offence.

At the top of the table Barcelona take on Real Sociedad on Sunday in a rich vein of form having scored 14 goals in their last three games and crucially notched up five against Real Madrid in their last home game which put them top of the table.

Coach Pep Guardiola realises though that they cannot relax against Sociedad who are riding high in the table.

“We are on a good run but we have been scoring a lot of goals for the last two or three years as well as conceding few. This is basis of this team and we look to maintain it through our style of football but there are still moments when you are doing better than others,” he said.

“We have to be ready as we could find ourselves in a difficult situation very quickly and we have to be careful against Real Sociedad because they have been a big surprise this season and are capable of producing a shock.”

The Sociedad players also believe that they can create an upset.

“They not only have a great forward line but also the best defence in the league,” said midfielder Xabi Prieto.

“It won’t be a game for us to enjoy but where we will have to work hard and make them suffer. We know that they are not unbeatable and so that also gives us belief and confidence.”

Real Madrid responded to their mauling by Barça with a 2-0 win over Valencia and they will now be a tough test for bottom side Zaragoza.

“We know what we are up against but if we can beat Real Madrid then it would really turn things around for us and so it would be worth more than just three points,” said Argentine Nico Bertolo.

“There is still a long way to go in the championship but we cannot afford to let many more points escape us. This will be a game where it will be Real Madrid who have everything to lose.”

Espanyol have put their confidence in youth products like Javi Marquez and Jose Callejon and so far it has been a major success with the team sitting in a Champions League place. They face a big test this weekend though with a trip to face Athletic Bilbao in their intimidating stadium.

Valencia’s form has dropped off with just one win in three games but they will look to get back on track against Osasuna.

Mallorca are on the fringes of the European places and play Racing Santander while below them are Atletico Madrid and Sevilla who have both had disappointed campaigns.

They face Deportivo la Coruña and Almeria, respectively.

At the other end of the table, third from bottom, Sporting Gijon have a crunch match against Levante, while Malaga one place above take on Hercules.