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LA LIGA

Messi, Dembele keep Barca three points clear in La Liga

Barcelona held off Atletico Madrid to ensure they will be three points clear at the top of La liga going into the winter break after beating a spirited Espanyol 2-0 at the Camp Nou on Saturday.

Published: 23 December 2018 11:42 CET
Messi, Dembele keep Barca three points clear in La Liga
Lionel Messi celebrates with Ousmane Dembele scoring a goal during the Spanish League football match between FC Barcelona and RC Celta de Vigo. Photo: Josep Lago/AFP.

First-half goals from Ousmane Dembele and Lionel Messi were enough to move Ernesto Valverde's side up to 37 points and keep them one step ahead of Atletico, who earlier drew level with Barca with a 1-0 win over Espanyol thanks to an Antoine Griezmann penalty.

“In the first half we got behind their defence well, we saw that with any play, playing with the space (left behind) we could score,” said Valverde.

Dembele put the hosts into the lead after just nine minutes when he lashed home on the rebound after Messi's first-time shot was pushed into his path by Celta keeper Ruben Blanco.

Messi doubled his side's advantage just before half-time, bursting through completely unmarked to meet the excellent Jordi Alba's through ball and wrong-foot Blanco as he slotted in his 15th league goal of the season.

The Argentine and Alba linked up nicely throughout, with the left-back providing the pass for the Messi shot that led to Dembele's opener.

“They [Messi and Alba] are a duo that has been working together for some time, they understand each other perfectly,” added Valverde.

“Let's hope they carry on working well.”

Luis Suarez missed a great opportunity to put the result beyond any doubt on the hour mark when he flashed wide after being found by Alba with another fine pass, but despite frequently testing Barca keeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Celta could not find the goal that would have put the Catalans under real pressure.


Earlier, Griezmann smashed home from the spot 10 minutes after the break to give Diego Simeone's side three points from a hard-fought match with mid-table Espanyol that extended Atletico's unbeaten league run to 14 matches.

“It was important to win regardless of how we did it,” said Atletico captain Diego Godin.

“We go into the (two-week) winter break happy with the three points.”

The 27-year-old Griezmann, who missed out on a Ballon d'Or despite winning the Europa League with Atletico last season and the World Cup with France in the summer, is on a fine run of form after having saved his side with a late winner at Real Valladolid last week.

His winner on Saturday was his fourth in three games after bagging a brace last week and scoring in Atletico's 3-0 hammering of Alaves a fortnight ago.

“Antoine is an excellent goalscorer,” added Godin. “He works for the team brilliantly and helps with his goals.”

Sevilla can join Atletico on 34 points with a win at struggling Leganes on Sunday.

FOOTBALL

‘Something no black player wants’: Bilbao striker suffers racist abuse

Athletic Bilbao striker Inaki Williams said he was the victim of racist abuse on Saturday during his team's 1-1 draw away to Espanyol in La Liga.

Published: 26 January 2020 09:53 CET
'Something no black player wants': Bilbao striker suffers racist abuse
Bilbao striker Inaki Williams celebrates during Saturdays game against Espagnol. Photo: Cesar Manso/AFP
“I'm a little sad because of the draw but especially because I have suffered racist insults,” Williams told the official club website after the game. “It's something that no black player or player of any race wants to hear. It's something totally out of place.”
   
“People have to come to the stadium to enjoy the game, to cheer on their team, to enjoy football. It's a game of friendship, of the team,” added the forward. “The truth is that it has been a sad day because of what I am telling you,
because these events that are totally out of place do not have to happen.”
 
Inaki wrote later on social media: “It is very sad that today we continue to experience racism in football. We have to end it. Thank you for your support. #Nomocracies #Semiostracism.”
 
   
Athletic Bilbao offered their backing for the 25-year-old. “All our support to @Williaaams45,” the club wrote in a message on Twitter. “Before anything, zero tolerance for racism.”
 
La Liga and the Spanish Football Federation are yet to comment but La Liga president Javier Tebas said it had been a dark day for the sport after violence also broke out between fans of Barcelona and Valencia before their fixture at Mestalla.
   
“Today we have taken a step back in the work that we started years ago,” Tebas wrote on Twitter. “The violent incidents between fans of Barcelona and Valencia, the racist insults made at Inaki Williams — these things are doing a lot of damage to Spanish football. “La Liga takes responsibility. We will look at the clubs where there has been wrongdoing.”
   
Referee Jose Sanchez made no mention of racism in his official report of the match between Espanyol and Bilbao.
   
The game also continued, unlike in December, when a Spanish second division fixture between Rayo Vallecano and Albacete was suspended with the agreement of the two clubs and La Liga.
   
Some Rayo supporters had chanted “Zozulya is a Nazi” in the first half against Albacete's Ukrainian striker Roman Zozulya, who had previously played for Rayo.
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