La Liga Lowdown

Wins galore, penalties, red cards, maiden goals and a hat-trick - LaLiga matchday 5 had it all. Join Ben Sully (@SullyBen) and Paco Polit (@pacopolitENG) as they look back at all the action that took place over the weekend.

Lamine Yamal starred for flawless Barcelona, while Real Madrid made Real Sociedad pay the penalty for numerous missed chances. Conor Gallagher and Julián Alvarez scored their first LaLiga goals as Atleti piled more misery on Valencia. There was also another late winner for unbeaten Villarreal, who look set to challenge for the top four.

Elsewhere, there was a hat-trick of assists for Athletic Club’s Iñaki Williams and a perfect hat-trick for Espanyol’s Javi Puado. Celta enjoyed another successful home outing, while García Pimienta celebrated a win and Vitor Roque ended his long wait for a LaLiga goal.

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Spain bounced back from their Serbian stalemate in the best possible fashion on Sunday night. Matt Clark (@MattClark_08) and Paco Polit (@pacopolitENG) unite to discuss the international break at length.

Luis de la Fuente's side produced a superb all-round performance to beat Switzerland 4-1 in Geneva, despite playing for over an hour with ten men.

Spain raced out of the blocks, with Joselu quickly reminding everyone that he can still provide the answer as Spain's number 9. Lamine Yamal produced yet another goal contribution, leading Paco to make a bold prediction for his season's total output, while comparing him to a certain former Barça player...

Fabián continued his fine form with Spain's second inside the first quarter of an hour. Robin Le Normand's dismissal (harsh, but we are biased) changed the picture, and the hosts pulled one back before the break.

Spain suffered in the second half, finishing with their lowest possession ever recorded. But they were clinical when they did have the ball: Ferran Torres showed his shark-like killer instincts in the pouring rain as he produced an assist and a goal to seal the victory.

We also discuss the Segunda weekend, including Paco's trip to Elda on Sunday night. You won't want to miss out on that!

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Review all the fantastic LaLiga action with Ben Sully (@SullyBen) and Román de Arquer (@Aeroslavee) in our pod for matchday 4.

There's plenty to go through, starting with Mbappé's scoring debut in LaLiga. Two crucial goals ensure three points against Betis and carry 'los blancos' all the way up to second position in the standings. Barça, on the other hand, thrashed Valladolid and are looking stronger than ever despite the (for many) disappointing transfer window.

Sevilla are feeling the heat as another home defeat brings back not too distant memories of suffering, after losing to an improving Girona. Meanwhile, the Valencian derby ended 1-1, with Villarreal clinging on to a draw after losing a player in the second half.

Find all this and so much more in our pod and remember, you can access all our content throughout the 2024-25 campaign by upgrading at lllonline.substack.com.

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No Olmo, no problem. Barcelona make it two wins in two despite being without the services of their star signing. Join Ben Sully (@SullyBen) and Paco Polit (@pacopolitENG) as they discuss Barcelona’s successful outing as well as the other nine matches from matchday two.

While Barça maintained their 100% record, city rivals Real Madrid and Atleti celebrated 3-0 victories in their respective home matches. However, there was to be no win in García Pimienta’s first home match as ex-Betis forward Ayoze Pérez proved to be Villarreal's hero against Sevilla.

In part two, we discuss super Celta, Kubo’s statement and Arrasate’s unsuccessful return to El Sadar. There was also a win for Leganés and a typical Bordalás performance.

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LaLiga is back! Join Ben Sully (@SullyBen) and Román de Arquer (@Aeroslavee) as they round up all the action from matchday one.

We discuss Real Madrid’s underwhelming start to their title defence and Barcelona’s hard-fought victory at Mestalla. Atlético Madrid’s Alexander Sørloth celebrated his return to Estadio de la Cerámica with a goal, while a LaLiga debutant stole the show for Getafe and Rayo Vallecano claimed a surprise win over Real Sociedad.

In the second part, we focus on Míchel’s new-look Girona side and García Pimienta’s Sevilla bow against his former employers. There was also plenty of time to laud the evergreen Iago Aspas and focus on the three newly promoted clubs.

Remember, you can access all our content throughout the 2024-25 campaign by upgrading at lllonline.substack.com.

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Hot on the heels of the Paris Olympics, football returns to Spain as LaLiga is back this week.

Matt Clark (@MattClark_08) and Román De Arquer (@Aeroslavee) preview the campaign with some exciting new faces and uncertainty at many of the clubs.

Hansi Flick is in the Barça hotseat. Can he revitalise the Catalans to challenge Real Madrid for the title? 

What about the impact of Kylian Mbappé? A signing that has been coming for years, Los Blancos finally have him, but how will he perform?

Atleti have had a busy summer of departures and potential arrivals? Can they challenge again?

How will Girona fare with key players gone and Champions League football to content with?

Athletic, La Real, Betis, Villarreal, Sevilla – can any of those push on into the top four?

We also discuss the rest of the clubs, including the three promoted sides. 

It feels hard to predict where things will end up, but we are excited to get back underway!

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We officially put an end to the season with our recap pod of the Euro 2024 final between Spain and England.

But such a special game deserved a special pod, which is why we brought together Matt Clark (@MattClark_08), Paco Polit (@pacopolitENG), Román de Arquer (@Aeroslavee) and Ben Sully (@SullyBen) to cover all the angles and opinions.

In fact, Paco was at the final in Berlin to give us his insight and share his unforgettable experience. All four review the match, the standout players, and provide the keys to Spain's success during the whole tournament. They also relive Spain's post-match celebrations and talk about England and whether it'll ever be coming home...

For more Spanish football, subscribe with us at lllonline.substack.com and get ready for what's coming in the 2024/25 season!

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Spain march on, all the way to Berlin for the grand final of the Euros, after beating one of the pre-tournament favourites, France.

Matt Clark (@MattClark_08) and Román de Arquer (@Aeroslavee) celebrate Spain's latest triumph and the sensational form of Lamine Yamal, still just 16 years old. A goal for the ages saw Spain draw level, before Dani Olmo – another unexpected standout of the tournament – scored the winner.

We praise Luis de la Fuente and his work in winning all six matches so far, before looking ahead to Sunday's final against England.

They came from behind in their semi against the Netherlands, as they have had to do in each of their knockout matches. Can they upset the form book and win the entire tournament, or will Spain's class shine through in Berlin?

Catch up on all the Euros pods so far, and subscribe with us at lllonline.substack.com

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Spain triumphed over the hosts to reach the final four of Euro 2024, where they will face France in a heavyweight semi-final.

Matt Clark (@MattClark_08) and Ben Sully (@SullyBen) reflect on the dramatic 120 minutes of action in Stuttgart, before looking ahead to the French clash.

Joselu said in the build-up they wanted to retire Toni Kroos, but it was actually Pedri who was forced to leave the field early, courtesy of a bad challenge from Kroos himself. In an ill-tempered first half, Robin Le Normand saw himself suspended for the semis against the country of his birth.

Dani Olmo broke the deadlock early in the second half, thanks to yet another assist from the prodigious Lamine Yamal. Luis de la Fuente took both wingers off, a gamble that almost backfired when Florian Wirtz equalised late in the game.

Extra time ticked by and it looked like penalties awaited, but up stepped Olmo to cross for fellow sub Mikel Merino to head home, reminiscent of Carles Puyol's momentous testazo in Durban in 2010.

Despite the dramatic chaos of the moment, Merino had the presence of mind to replicate a celebration performed by his father in the same stadium 33 years ago. A precious moment for him and all Spanish fans. We include the fabulous commentary from Antonio Muelas Aberasturi from Radio Nacional de España.

In Part Two we look ahead to the semis, talking Kylian Mbappé and the other strong LaLiga links in the French team, and Didier Deschamps' blasé attitude to his critics.

We applaud the powerful political statements made by many of the French players, in contrast to Unai Simon's recent dead-batting of similar questions.

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Spain eventually cruised past Georgia to book their place in the quarter-finals of Euro 2024. They were given a scare, but won their first knockout match in 90 minutes since the Euro 2012 final.

Matt Clark (@MattClark_08) and Paco Polit (@pacopolitENG) reflect on this big win and look ahead to a mouthwatering clash with the hosts Germany.

There is praise for Rodri, Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams and Robin Le Normand and of course consolation for Giorgi Mamardashvili. 

Ahead of the clash with Germany, Paco is nervous after Joselu's comments in the press conference, but believes Spain can end the 'curse of the hosts'.

Keep across all of our coverage at lllonline.substack.com.

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