The north of Seville became for a few hours a part of Gipuzkoa. Real Sociedad won their fourth Copa del Rey at the La Cartuja stadium, after beating Atlètic de Madrid in a penalty shootout after a match that ended in a two-goal draw. Simeone's team, defeated, will now focus on trying to win the Champions League for the first time after falling against the Basques, who repeat the success of the 2021 Copa final in the same venue, although then they did it without fans as it was during the pandemic. On this occasion, the loyal followers of the Txuri-Urdin team were able to witness it live.

The north of Seville became, for a few hours, part of Gipuzkoa. Real Sociedad won their fourth Copa del Rey at the La Cartuja stadium, after beating Atlético de Madrid in a penalty shootout following a match that ended in a two-goal draw. Simeone's team, defeated, will now focus on trying to win the Champions League for the first time after falling to the Basques, who repeat the success of the 2021 Copa final in the same venue, although then they did it without fans, as it was during the pandemic. On this occasion, the loyal followers of the txuri-urdin team were able to experience it live.

Barça put in the heart and football, but a cowardly Atlético de Madrid knew how to get oil from their visit to the Camp Nou (0-2). With two goals in barely three shots on target, the Colchoneros punished a blaugrana team that had to play the entire second half with one less player due to Pau Cubarsí's expulsion in the 43rd minute. The fans flocked to the stadium en masse, hopeful and excited about a group of players who have often made them happy with comebacks and thrashings, but this time the outcome was very cruel.

Barça is once again a victim of the FIFA virus. Raphinha suffers an injury to the right thigh's femoral biceps and will be out for around five weeks, as confirmed by Barça after the medical tests carried out by the Brazilian national team. The player was withdrawn injured from the friendly he played on Thursday with Brazil after feeling a twinge in the back of his right leg and will return to Barcelona in the coming hours to begin his recovery. ARA had already reported that the footballer's initial sensations were not good at all and everything pointed to a muscle tear. The club is unhappy with the calendar for scheduling friendly matches at this point in the season when teams are fighting for titles.

What a first half. What a disaster. Just when Barça seemed to be on a roll, a painful defeat. Perhaps if Cubarsí's goal hadn't been disallowed, a comeback might still have been possible, but we have to believe there was an offside. But it's hard to believe. Nevertheless, we must continue to believe in this team despite the shipwreck. It's not the time to throw everything away, even though it's difficult after watching a match best forgotten.

Barça defeats Atlético de Madrid and makes a statement in La Liga F. Pere Romeu's team takes advantage of Real Madrid's defeat and now has a ten-point lead at the top of the table. The Blaugrana came out with a clear game plan, aware that they couldn't afford to slip up against the second-highest scoring team in the competition (Barça is the first). Goals from Alexia Putellas, Claudia Pina, Esmee Brugts, and Salma Paralluelo – who was returning to action after a three-month injury layoff – secured another three points in a match played early due to the Spanish Super Cup, which takes place from January 20th to 24th in Castellón. Barça will play their semifinal match against Athletic Club de Bilbao on Wednesday the 21st (7 pm).

A classic in Arab lands. It's becoming something of a tradition for Saudis to enjoy live what they wanted to see, and what they dug deep into their pockets for: this Sunday, Barça and Madrid will face off in the Super Cup final. Xabi Alonso's Madrid escaped the derby with a win against an Atlético side that seemed to have lost its scoring touch, despite competing without Mbappé. And the Federation and the Saudis have their dream final. The competition format, once the decision was made to invite four teams, was already designed for this purpose: to increase the chances of having the main course on the table on the day of the final. A classic. The whole football world will savor it.

The heart of Hansi Flick's Barça is beating strong again after a resounding 3-1 victory against Atlético Madrid, a win that strengthens their position at the top of La Liga. With Raphinha's brilliance, Pedri's flair, and a proud crowd that filled all 45,000 seats at the new Camp Nou, the team stood up to a rival on a winning streak. Thanks to goals from Raphinha, Olmo, and Ferran, Barça secured three crucial points in the title race and recovered a sense of pride that, at times this season, seemed to have faded.

A week of resurrection for Atlético de Madrid, capable of defeating Real Madrid in a beautiful derby, with chances at both ends. Xabi Alonso's first defeat as manager in La Liga opens the door for Barça, who could snatch top spot from a team that has been overwhelmed by the intensity of the Colchoneros. It's been 75 years since Atlético Madrid led by five goals. The last time was in 1950, in a 3-6 win at Chamartín when Helenio Herrera was managing Atlético. "We had to enjoy this game," said Simeone, who was breathing heavily. If just a few days ago Atlético were losing 2-1 to Rayo Vallecano and seemed eliminated from the title race, they now climb up the table thanks to the comeback against Rayo Vallecano and today's well-deserved victory. Six points from two derbies in five days.

When Diego Pablo Simeone, better known as the Cholo, landed on the Atlético de Madrid bench, Guardiola's Barça were the reigning Champions League champions, José Mourinho was managing Real Madrid, and Artur Mas was governing the Generalitat (Catalan government). On December 23rd, it will be fourteen years since an Argentine—an idol during his time as a footballer—with little coaching experience (he had only managed Argentine teams and a brief stint in Italy) arrived at the old Vicente Calderón. More than a decade later, he has managed to change the way Atlético fans think and establish a style of play that is now at the center of debate among fans. "El Cholo is no longer sacred to many fans. The public still cheers him, but he is no longer untouchable," Fran Guillén, who has called Atlético matches on DAZN, told ARA.

Espanyol's season of consolidation in the elite, the one that breaks with Rastar Group And leaving behind a decade with one European qualification and two traumatic relegations, they started on the right foot. A change of ownership, an increase in season ticket holders, a sales success for the new shirt (yesterday the queue was out of the store), an unbeaten run in the preseason... all the hype The turmoil surrounding the Perico club since Joan Garcia's departure was met with a rejuvenated Atlético de Madrid, once again a contender for everything, in the 37th minute with a superb free-kick from Julián Álvarez. But a set piece executed by Edu Expósito and finished off by Miguel Rubio and a real stunner from Pere Milla late in the match unleashed a party at the RCDE Stadium, in ecstasy over the colossal performance of Manolo González's men, which sent Simeone to the corner to think.

On July 14, Espanyol announced that Rastar had reached an agreement with Velocity Sport Limited (VSL) to sell the club to him for €130 million. Two weeks later, the shareholders of the Chinese conglomerate accepted the change of hands at a shareholders' meeting, which includes a 16.45% stake in VSL, which controls the Espanyol club and English club Burnley, both teams under the umbrella of the business holding company led by Alan Pace.

"Every Girona game in the First Division should be a celebration," reflected Jordi Guerrero, former assistant coach of the Red and Whites and now a partner in Domènec Torrent's adventures in Mexico, a few years ago. The Arbucian knew what he was talking about, accustomed to the mud of the anonymous leagues. From a distance, he must have started a bottle of cava with the current permanence, unexpectedly suffered by the winger. Montilivi celebrated him at the closing ceremony of the championship, albeit without much enthusiasm, something that would have made Guerrero grimace, and he would break into song and dance, if necessary. But both the squad and the fans are exhausted and worn out. The holidays are necessary. Atlético won thanks to the hat trick from Sorloth and a goal from Lenglet (0-4), an exaggerated result in the final minutes.

Espanyol will need to raise its voice more to gain the respect of the referees. Just days after its CEO, Mao Ye, accepted the explanations from the Technical Committee of Referees (CTA) on the controversial refereeing suffered in Son Moix, The blue and whites saw new refereeing errors take their toll against an Atlético de Madrid (1-1) that is moving further away from the fight for the title. One déjà vu, if we take into account that on the Madrid team's last visit to the RCDE Stadium, a ghost goal by Antoine Griezmann was validated without the VAR having any image that demonstrated that the ball had completely crossed the goal line.

It looked like Barça would lose at Atlético Madrid, but four goals in 20 minutes gave them the win at the Metropolitano, a stadium where you always have to suffer, whether you're the visiting team or the home fans, who haven't had the best week, between the penalty shootout defeat to Real Madrid and Barça's comeback. Atlético are seriously hurt in the fight for the league title. Will it be a two-man showdown?

It looked like Barça would lose at Atlético Madrid, but four goals in 20 minutes gave them the win at the Metropolitano, a stadium where you always have to suffer, whether you're the visiting team or the home fans, who haven't had the best week, between the penalty shootout defeat to Real Madrid and Barça's comeback. Atlético are seriously hurt in the fight for the league title. Will it be a two-man showdown?

Atlético de Madrid host Barça this Sunday (9 p.m., DAZN) in a slump after a brutal Champions League elimination on penalties. "My feelings are ones of rage and injustice. But, in my position, the only thing I can do is work so the team continues competing as always," said Diego Pablo Simeone, the Atlético Madrid coach, just three days after conceding against Real Madrid. With barely any time to recover after playing 120 minutes on Wednesday, the Argentine coach has the difficult task of reviving his team, immersed in the fight for the La Liga title, against Hansi Flick's Barça.

Atlético de Madrid host Barça this Sunday (9 p.m., DAZN) in a slump after a brutal Champions League elimination on penalties. "My feelings are ones of rage and injustice. But, in my position, the only thing I can do is work so the team continues competing as always," said Diego Pablo Simeone, the Atlético Madrid coach, just three days after conceding against Real Madrid. With barely any time to recover after playing 120 minutes on Wednesday, the Argentine coach has the difficult task of reviving his team, immersed in the fight for the La Liga title, against Hansi Flick's Barça.

Atlético de Madrid manager Diego Pablo Simeone burst into the press conference by questioning the journalists: "Raise your hand if you've seen Julián touch the ball twice." The Argentine wanted to put the goal disallowed to his team during the penalty shootout at the center of the controversy. Champions League round of 16 second leg against Real Madrid (0-1, 3-4) and bitterly criticized the referee's decision.

Hansi Flick's Barça shot themselves in the foot again against Atlético de Madrid (4-4) and let a two-goal lead slip away after coming back from 0-2 down. Atlético de Madrid, again with Sorloth as the final hero, managed to get out of Montjuïc alive thanks to two goals in the final minutes. Barça showed that they have unwavering faith by managing to turn the initial score around, but they were unable to close out the game and everything remains open for the return to Madrid on April 2.