La Liga Recap: Lionel Messi returns with goals; Real Madrid stumble to yet another win

Three minutes later, Morata showed his heading ability when he scored from a header six yards from left, after Nacho’s assist following a corner. The Spaniard was not to stop just then, as he went on to score another goal from outside the box next giving his side a three-goal cushion. But just like the fans have seen in last few months, the moment Real gets too comfortable on the field, they tend to make mistakes – and they did yet again

Real’s defence completely opened up soon after, giving a chance to opposition to get back into the game. Gabriel Pires put the ball behind an empty net from a left-footed shot after a deflection by Sergio Ramos inside the box in 32nd minute. Questions must be raised against Real goalkeeper Keylor Navas, as he was nowhere inside the six-yard box when the goal was scored. Once again, you could see why the pressure has grown on Navas and the rumours surging to bring David De Gea back to the Spanish capital – only this time to don the white kit.

In the very next minute, a corner went unchallenged by Nacho who just stood ball-watching as Luciano Neves scored the second goal for the home side, taking the score to 2-3. Real regained a two-goal lead soon into the second half after an own goal by Leganes captain Martin Mantovani and the game ended with 2-4 score on the board. But Leganes gave a pretty good scare to Zidane’s side, especially in the first half. The home team took 10 shots in the first half, more than any other side has taken against Los Blancos in the first 45 minutes.

Zidane, after the match, accepted he was angry at his side for losing momentum. “In the heat of the moment, I got angry, yes. That’s because we were controlling the game. and in a short period of time, we allowed our opponents back into in the game,” he said.

Real need to keep their defensive woes in check or soon they might lose out their top position in the table to Barcelona who are just two points behind them. Luis Enrique’s side showed they are returning back to top of things after a solid performance against fourth placed Sevilla. In a match, which many expected to go down to the wire, Jorge Sampaoli’s side was no match to the trio of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar. While Neymar, along with Andres Iniesta, opened up pockets of space in the middle, Suarez and Messi controlled the game inside the box.

An assist from Messi saw the Uruguayan striker scoring his 101st goal for the Catalans. Suarez showed the finishing techniques available at his disposal, when he scored from a bicycle kick. Suarez returned the favour few minutes later, giving a brilliant pass to Messi inside the six-yard box, who put his name on the score sheet after his return from suspension.

Within the first half hour, Barca attained a three-goal lead, with Messi scoring two goals. The lead proved too much for Sevilla to tackle and they completely shut down in the second half, finding only few moments of good football. Barca played too deep, quite happy to contain the lead and the match ended at 3-0. Time at Sevilla seems to drawing to a close for Sampaoli, with rumours suggesting the three-time Europa League winning manager will soon be on his way to Milan from the next season.

Atletico Madrid’s 1-0 win against Real Sociedad in the week further dented Sevilla’s La Liga campaign, as Diego Simeone’s side gained comfortable lead over them for the third position. Up next, Rojiblancos will take on the table toppers Real Madrid in the weekend fixture. With just the right combination of moves in front, Atletico Madrid can win the derby, as Madrid have proven time and again this season that they are not as strong a defensive unit as they were a few years ago.

Other results: Athletic Bilbao 2-0 Espanyol; Real Betis 0-1 Villarreal; Sporting 0-1 Malaga; Deportivo 0-0 Granada; Alaves 0-1 Osasuna

Still to play: Eibar Vs Las Palmas; Valencia vs Celta Vigo