Round 3 in Spain resumes with the more fancied clubs Barcelona, Real Mardrid, and Athletico Madrid not having it all their way early doors, each troubling the statisticians in the 'games lost' column. Maybe their midweek exertions in the Champions League, in which each team impressively won their respective games, will provide a platform for impressive performances in the domestic league. One of the games of Round 3 is between two early high-flyers, Espanyol against Getafe.
Matchday 2 Results
FC Barcelona 1 - 1 Real Racing Club Santander
Real Valladolid CF 2 - 1 Atletico Madrid
Sevilla FC 4 - 3 Real Sporting de Gijón
Getafe CF 0 - 0 Real Betis
Malaga CF 0 - 0 Athletic Club Bilbao
RCD Mallorca 1 - 1 CA Osasuna
RC Recreativo Huelva 0 - 1 Espanyol Barcelona
Villarreal CF 1 - 0 RC Deportivo de La Coruña
Real Madrid 4 - 3 CD Numancia
UD Almeria 2 - 2 Valencia CF
Saturday, 20th September
Espanyol Barcelona v Getafe CF
Summary: Both teams, especially Espanyol, have began their campaigns in impressive fashion as they remain undefeated so far. The two clubs acquired new coaches during the summer which have seemed to bear fruit early on with optimism at saturated levels. Injuries though are part and parcel of the game and Espanyol's depth may be tested here with key men David Garcia, Ivan De la Pena and Rufete all doubts for this encounter. In better news, former Liverpool man Steve Finnan is in line for his La Liga debut. Getafe also have injuries to contend with as they try and keep their undefeated record intact. First choice goalkeepers, Argentineans Roberto Abbondanzieri and Oscar Ustari, are expected to miss out this evening.
Verdict: This match seems to have draw written all over it between two evenly matched teams. Both have had a fairly strong start to the season and although Espanyol are the only team with two wins to their name, they will be given a good battle by Getafe. The away team will be looking for a minimum of a point to ensure that the current 2 point gap between the two sides is not stretched any further.
Pick: Getafe +0.5 Asn Hcp.
Espanyol 1 - 1 Getafe
Sunday, 21st September
Real Sporting de Gijon v Barcelona
Summary: Barca are desperate for a win here against the bottom placed Real Sporting de Gijon. Following two dissapointing results in La Liga, a 1-0 defeat at Numancia and 1-1 draw against Racing at the Nou Camp, Barcelona showed some of their true self midweek with a fine 3-1 win over Sporting Lisbon. Henry is ruled out through illness but Guardiola will have from Eto'o, Messi and Krkic to choose from. A defeat here and Barcelona would of had their worst start to a season in 35 years!
Pick: OVER 2.5 goals
Sporting Gijon 1 - 6 Barcelona
Real Racing Club Santander v Real Madrid
Summary: Racing have been impressive so far this season but have had only two points to show for it. 1-1 draws against more fancied opposition, Sevilla and Barcelona, is not bad and will ensure that they will be in a confident mood for this encounter. Real Madrid have fallen victim to their own supporters after some poor recent performances despite winning. Their 4-3 win in La Liga against Numancia and 2-0 win against BATE Borisov in the Champions League were met with a chorus of boos from their own supporters. Sneijder and Gago are likely to miss for Real whereas Racing manager, Juan Ramon Muniz, should have a full compliment of players to choose from.
Pick: OVER 2.5 goals
Racing Santander 0 - 2 Real Madrid
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