La Liga Results 2017: Ibai Gomez Hat-Trick Sees Alaves Past Girona on Monday
An Ibai Gomez hat-trick inspired Alaves to a stunning late fightback against Girona on Monday, as they battled from two goals down to win 3-2 and haul themselves off the bottom of the La Liga table.
In the second period, the hosts stormed into a two-goal lead and appeared to have done enough for all three points. But Gomez took over, as he halved the deficit, equalised three minutes from time and then netted a remarkable winner in the 94th minute.
Earlier in the weekend, Barcelona extended their lead at the top of the table despite drawing 2-2 at home with Celta Vigo. That's after 10-man Getafe stunned Valencia 1-0; Real Madrid also failed to capitalise on their rivals slipping up, as they drew 0-0 at Athletic Bilbao.
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Here are the results in full from the latest round of an absorbing weekend in Spain's top flight.
La Liga Results
Malaga 0-0 Levante
Barcelona 2-2 Celta Vigo
Atletico Madrid 2-1 Real Sociedad
Sevilla 2-0 Deportivo la Coruna
Athletic Bilbao 0-0 Real Madrid
Leganes 3-1 Villarreal
Getafe 1-0 Valencia
Eibar 3-1 Espanyol
Las Palmas 1-0 Real Betis
Girona 2-3 Alaves
For the La Liga table in full, visit the Sky Sports website.
Monday Recap
Neither side was at their best in a timid first period, but after the break, the game sparked into life, with Girona taking it to the bottom club.
After starting the second period with much more vigour, Stuani was the man who broke the deadlock, powering in from the left flank and hammering the ball home. As OptaJose noted, the former Middlesbrough forward is a brilliant poacher:
"100% - Cristhian Stuani ya has now scored 50 La Liga goals in his career (eight for Girona), all of them coming from inside the box. Fishing. pic.twitter.com/j69jf91h4L
— OptaJose (@OptaJose) December 4, 2017"
Instead of sitting back after getting in front, Girona continued to apply pressure, and within three minutes, they were two ahead. This time it was Juape on target, as he planted a header into the corner.
It should have been more than enough for Girona against the division's worst outfit, but Alaves deserve credit for showing some spirit late in the clash.
Indeed, with 19 minutes left, they set up a nervy finish, as Gomez's shot found its way into the back of the net despite the best efforts of Bono in the Girona goal.
Suddenly the stadium was laced with tension and Alaves capitalised. With three minutes left, that edginess was evident in Bono, as he felled an opponent in the area, giving Gomez the chance to level things up from 12 yards; he duly obliged.
That appeared to be that, but Gomez was bristling with confidence at this point and was able to round off the remarkable turnaround with what was essentially the final kick of the game.
Weekend Review
Bleacher Report UK summed up the La Liga weekend, as plenty of sides at the top will lament opportunities missed:
In terms of the title battle, the weekend started for Barcelona with a disappointing draw at home to Celta Vigo.
The visitors deserve great credit for the way in which they approached this one, as they took the lead and then equalised after goals from Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez edged Barcelona in front. Iago Aspas was the star for Celta, grabbing one goal and one assist.
As noted by journalist Mootaz Chehade, the former Liverpool man has been excellent for the Galician club:
Celta's brilliance opened the door for the chasing pack, and the only side to take advantage was Atletico Madrid, who fought back from a goal down to beat Real Sociedad 2-1.
It was another step in the right direction for Antoine Griezmann, too, who netted a dramatic late winner for Diego Simeone's team. The Frenchman had been struggling for form for much of the campaign, although he now has four goals in his last three games.
With transfer speculation swirling, there has been some angst aimed towards Griezmann from the Atletico fans. But, as relayed by Ben Hayward of Goal, it's clear he still has the support of his manager:
Real Madrid, meanwhile, continued their away-day struggles on Saturday night, as they played out a stalemate at Athletic. Manager Zinedine Zidane fielded the same XI that started in the UEFA Champions League final against Juventus in May, though the side is lacking the spark they had late last term.
Valencia then spurned a massive chance to chop the gap at the top down to two points. Getafe, who were reduced to 10 men after 25 minutes, were superb throughout and well worth their victory.
