Barcelona down Getafe as Valencia end Athletic’s unbeaten run

Barcelona kept the pressure on Real Madrid on Saturday with a hard-fought 2-0 win at Getafe that moved them to within a point of the La Liga leaders.

Their first win away from home since April puts Ernesto Valverde’s side, who finished with 10 men with Clement Lenglet’s late red card, temporarily level on 13 points with Atletico and Real Sociedad as Diego Simeone’s side attempt to snatch top spot from their local rivals later.

“This match was crucial for us to rid ourselves of the sensation of never being able to win away,” said Valverde.

“We knew that we were going to play at a very demanding ground in hot conditions, on a pitch where the ball doesn’t zip much and against a tough opponent that stops you from playing.

“We didn’t play well in the first half but once we took the lead they basically didn’t have any chances.”

A remarkable counter-attack goal launched by Marc-Andre Ter Stegen and finished off by Luis Suarez put Barca on their way four minutes before the break, and Junior’s tap-in shortly after the restart made sure of the three points.

Ter Stegen is embroiled in a row with Bayern Munich captain Manuel Neuer over the Barca stopper’s lack of opportunities with the Germany team.

However he showed his class when he raced out of his goal to stop a Getafe attack before launching a pin-point pass over the home side’s dozing defence to Suarez, who calmly lobbed the opener over David Soria.

“Sometimes when passes come off like this the goalkeeper is just clearing the ball. I don’t know if that is the case here, but regardless he brings us a lot,” added Valverde.

The win was Barca’s second in a week as they attempt to recover from an miserable start that led to questions surrounding Valverde’s future.

Earlier, Athletic Bilbao wasted its chance to regain the Spanish League lead when it lost 1-0 to Valencia on Saturday.

Denís Cheryshev scored for Valencia, which ended a three-game winless streak and moved to ninth place.

Athletic stayed fourth, two points behind leader Real Madrid which hosts third-place Atlético Madrid later Saturday in the first capital derby of the season.

Athletic and Real Madrid were the only unbeaten teams in the league entering the weekend. Athletic hadn’t lost at home in 14 consecutive matches

Cheryshev scored from close range after a fast breakaway in the 27th minute at San Mamés Stadium.

“I liked how the players responded,” Valencia coach Albert Celades said. “We were coming off a sequence of very difficult matches. They put in a great effort.”

Valencia had conceded nine goals in its previous three league matches.

Meanwhile, Villarreal routed Real Betis 5-1 on Friday for its third win in four matches, moving it near the top of the Spanish league.

Karl Toko Ekambi scored twice and Santi Cazorla, Gerard Moreno and Samuel Chukwueze added a goal each to give Villarreal the comfortable victory at home. Emerson scored for Real Betis at the Cerámica Stadium.

The victory moved Villarreal to fifth place with 11 points. It is three points behind leader Real Madrid, which on Saturday visits crosstown rival Atlético Madrid.

Villarreal’s only setback in the last four rounds was a 2-1 loss to two-time defending champion Barcelona at Camp Nou Stadium on Tuesday.

Real Betis, which was unbeaten in its last four matches, stayed ninth in the 20-team table, with eight points.

Agencies