10 THINGS WE LEARNED from LaLiga
Jude Bellingham is bigger than the Beatles after blistering start at Real Madrid, as Sergio Ramos goes full circle to Sevilla and Gavi reaches 100 Barcelona games aged only 19… 10 THINGS WE LEARNED from LaLiga
- Jude Bellingham continued his hot streak in front of goal with a late winner
- Sevilla fans can no longer boo Sergio Ramos, while Girona are flying high
- Listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport’s podcast It’s All Kicking Off
There were just nine games in LaLiga after a severe weather report put paid to Atletico Madrid v Sevilla. That gave the away side time to re-sign Sergio Ramos.
Real Madrid won again thanks to LaLiga’s top scorer Jude Bellingham and elsewhere Girona’s march up the table continues.
Here are ten things we learned from week four.
Bellingham is bigger than the Beatles
Well not quite… but the enduring love for the Fab Four in Spain and the new love for the England midfielder meant that they serenaded his winner with a decent rendition of Hey Jude – particularly strong on the la-la-la-la bit.
‘My legs trembled when I heard it,’ he said.
Jude Bellingham scored his fifth LaLiga goal with a dramatic late winner against Getafe
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Toni Kroos still in a different class
He didn’t start the game but he transformed it when he came on at half time barely playing a bad pass and running the match as Madrid came back to beat Getafe 2-1.
Luka Modric was also outstanding. The veteran pair have 70 years between them and they will play less this season but they will be as important as ever.
Toni Kroos is still a class act in Real Madrid’s midfield at the age of 33, as seen against Getafe
Ramos comes home
Al-Ittihad wanted him and were offering much more than Sevilla but 37-year-old Sergio Ramos wants to ‘close the circle’.
He left Sevilla when he was 19-years-old for Real Madrid where he became the greatest in his position in the world.
Sevilla fans have booed him every time he has returned since. Surely now they will back him. Bottom of the table, they certainly need him.
Sergio Ramos looked delighted as he went full circle by returning to his first club Sevilla
Girona to the Champions League
City Group’s Spanish side had a good transfer window and an even better start to the season.
It’s now just two points dropped from the opening 12 after they won at the weekend.
They had a good window too signing Eric Garcia from Barcelona on deadline day.
Girona celebrates their win over Las Palmas to move second in the LaLiga standings
Bellingham’s inner number nine unleashed
Bellingham has now scored eight goals in his last seven games.
That’s five in four for Barcelona and three in three before that in his last games for Dortmund.
This season only Erling Haaland is ahead of him in the race for the Golden Boot.
Bellingham seems to have reinvented himself as a No 9 during recent outings
Gavi is the youngest veteran in LaLiga
The Spain and Barcelona midfielder played his 100th game for Barcelona on Sunday and he is only 19 years old. Just 420 games and he levels with Lionel Messi!
He finished the game with five stitches in his ear after being on the end of Ruben Garcia’s elbow and was below par in Barça’s win over Osasuna.
Keeping his place might not be so easy once Joao Felix begins to start up front with Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha leaving himself, Pedri.
Frenkie de Jong, Oriol Romeu and Ilkay Gundogan all scrapping for three positions.
Gavi has already racked up 100 appearances for Barcelona and he’s still only 19
Robert’s goals still make him worth the money
As revealed by Cadena Ser on Sunday night Robert Lewandowski earned 20m euros [£17.1m] last season and he will earn 26m euros [£22.23m] this season.
Next season he is set to earn 32m euros [£27.36m] and if he plays a certain percentage of games in his third season he will get a fourth year and earn 26m euros again.
It’s a lot of money but goals wins games and leagues and he is still scoring plenty while not playing particularly well.
He got the winner on Sunday to send Barcelona third.
Robert Lewandowski doesn’t come cheap but his goals will prove to be priceless for Barcelona
It was a good weekend for Mendilibar
Had Sevilla lost to Atletico Madrid they would have gone into the international break pointless after four games and it could have cost Jose Luis Mendilibar his job.
As it was the game was called off because of the threat of bad weather and Sevilla then signed Ramos.
The club were reluctant to bring back someone who will have a lot of political power but his quality is beyond argument and that is all that will bother Mendilibar who desperately needs more from his team to keep his job.
Jose Luis Mendilibar was pleased Sevilla’s game was postponed as he feared for his job
Chimy has a rocket in his left foot
It’s the one he usually uses for standing on by the tattooed tornado scored the goal of the weekend past LaLiga’s best goalkeeper to level for Osasuna against Barcelona.
He didn’t deserve to be on the losing side but Lewandowski made it so.
Chimy Avila scores a stunner to bring Osasuna level against Barcelona on Sunday night
First step on the road back for Joao Felix
He didn’t come on until minute 79 but those 11 minutes were his first of the season and follow a summer when he also sat watching from the sidelines.
Barça spoke of the Portuguese’ willingness to make a financial sacrifice to join and Spanish radio Cope revealed last week that they are only paying him 400k for the season.
He will also earn around 1.5m from Atletico Madrid who are even more desperate for him to do well than Barcelona so they can sell him for something close to the 127m euros they paid for him four years ago.
Joao Felix came off the bench for Barcelona in what would have been a welcome return
IT’S ALL KICKING OFF!
It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.
It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.
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