08/15/26 02:50:00
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08/15 14:48 CDT Daz thrives and Alaves beats 10-man Getafe 3-0 as La Liga
kicks off Europe's domestic league season
Daz thrives and Alaves beats 10-man Getafe 3-0 as La Liga kicks off Europe's
domestic league season
By TALES AZZONI
AP Sports Writer
MADRID (AP) --- Europe's top domestic leagues kicked off Saturday with Alaves
defeating 10-man Getafe 3-0 in Spain.
Mariano Daz scored a goal and had two assists against a Getafe squad that
played a man down from the 42nd minute.
The Spanish league was the first of the main five in Europe to start, less than
a month after its national team won the World Cup.
Defending champion Barcelona and Jos Mourinho's Real Madrid won't start their
campaigns until next weekend because they had players return late from the
World Cup.
Barcelona, chasing a third straight Spanish league crown, visits Elche on Aug.
23. Madrid, revamped under Mourinho after a second consecutive season without a
major title, starts at Espanyol on Aug. 22.
Sevilla hosts Rayo Vallecano in the second game on Saturday.
The European season officially started on Wednesday when Paris Saint-Germain
defeated Aston Villa 2-1 in the UEFA Super Cup.
The Premier League, the Italian league and the French league start next
weekend. The German league will get going the following week.
Daz, the former Real Madrid forward, gave the pass for Nahuel Tenaglia's
header in the 73rd before claiming Alaves' second goal with a well-placed shot
into the top corner in stoppage time and then setting up Mikel Rodrguez's
final score in the final minutes.
Getafe's Kiko Femena was sent off for a dangerous foul just before halftime.
His initial yellow card was changed into a red after video review.
Alaves' Angel Prez was reprimanded by coach Quique Snchez Flores after being
substituted and punching the bench several times.
Alaves was 14th in the league last season, one point above the relegation zone.
Getafe was coming off a seventh-place finish, having earned a Conference League
spot. The Madrid club has added Enes Unal and Johan Mojica to its squad this
season but neither were included in the starting lineup. Unal came off the
bench in the second half.
Sevilla will host a Vallecano team that is in turmoil amid administration
issues that has kept the club out of its Vallecas stadium for the beginning of
the season. The club must play its first home game at second-tier Leganes'
venue because of unsafe conditions.
Rayo finished eighth last season and reached the Conference League final, which
it lost to Crystal Palace.
Sevilla finished 13th, also one point above the relegation zone.
Three Spanish league games were scheduled for Sunday but only two will take
place because the match between Celta Vigo and Osasuna had to be postponed
because of a fungus outbreak on Celta's Balaidos field. It's rescheduled to
Aug. 27 despite complaints by Osasuna.
The two Sunday games will include Racing Santander's return to the top flight
after a 14-year absence. It hosts Villarreal, the third-place finisher last
season behind Barcelona and Madrid. Levante visits Espanyol.
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