Atletico Madrid got a painful Barcelona defeat out of their
system by undoing European rivals Real Zaragoza 4-0 on Sunday. A
first league goal from Luis Garcia,
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summer, a brace from Argentine Maxi Rodriguez and a Diego Forlan
strike clinched a comfortable win as Atletico moved up to
sixth.
It was sweet revenge for Atletico as Zaragoza beat them home and
away last season and ousted them for sixth place and the final UEFA
Cup spot. Before the match Atletico coach Javier Aguirre complained
that his South American stars were shattered after travelling on
international duty but there was no sign of jetlag as they set the
early pace.
With just ten minutes gone Forlan picked out a precise pass for
Garcia who made no mistake with a calm side-footed finish. Forlan,
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bought as a replacement for Fernando Torres, then got on the
score-sheet himself with a first-time lob on 34 minutes for his
third goal of the season.
Rodriguez then stole the show scoring twice and was delighted
with the result and the performance. "We played well and two
goals is obviously great for me," he said. "We are a good
team and we showed that today."
Confidence boost
Intertoto Cup winners Atletico are in UEFA Cup action on
Thursday when they travel to Lokomotiv Moscow for their first group
match. Getafe are also in UEFA Cup action on Thursday against
Tottenham Hotspur and they bolstered their confidence by
registering their first win of the season with a 2-0 victory over
Murcia on Sunday.
Getafe, cup finalists and a creditable ninth in the league last
season, have struggled since losing coach Bernd Schuster to Real
Madrid in the summer, but the Madrid-based side took a step in the
right direction with a much-needed win, although they still lie in
the relegation zone. Substitute Kepa, who was later sent off,
opened the scoring in the 54th minute and Francisco Casero added a
second five minutes later to clinch the points.
Getafe, managed by former Barcelona and Real great Michael
Laudrup,
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and hope to spring a surprise result in the capital. Laudrup
revealed that he may rest some players for the Tottenham match with
the league their top priority.
"The league has the priority at the moment," said
Laudrup. "We have to think of the next league match against
Santander on Sunday and then against Bilbao.
"That does not mean we are going to give up in
Thursday's match but there will be changes so that the players
are fresh for Sunday."
Elsewhere, last season's second division champions
Valladolid continue to struggle in the top-flight, crashing to a
2-1 loss against Athletic Bilbao. Artiz Aduriz scored twice for
Bilbao after eight and 31 minutes to leave Valladolid second from
bottom with promoted Levante, who have only one point, propping up
the table.
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