The La Liga 2024/25 season got underway this week with a season opener between Athletic Club vs Getafe on Thursday, August 15. Let’s take a look at the results and highlights thus far through Matchday 1 of the competition.
Uche Scores In La Liga Debut As Getafe Draws With Athletic, 1-1
Christantus Uche made his La Liga debut on Thursday after five years of toiling in the lower divisions of Spanish soccer. He had immediate success at the highest level, scoring a clutch goal to earn his team a draw against Athletic Club in their season opener.
Uche had a terrific opportunity to give Getafe the lead in the first half after racing in behind Athletic’s line early on. He failed to convert, however, unable to collect the ball cleanly on the bounce as Alex Padilla pushed it away.
It was Sancet on Athletic who opened the scoring with his first goal of the 2024-25 campaign just before the half-hour mark. He was able to fire a quick shot which beat David Soria into the right corner.
Uche was able to find a way past Padilla in the second half when he met Luis Milla’s cross with his head to level out the score. Williams had the chance to get the win for Athletic late with a game-winner off the bench but Soria was equal to both his efforts.
In the end, both teams had to settle for a single point from their first fixture this season. Athletic have now failed to win their first game of the season in all of the last five campaigns. This includes three draws and two losses. Getafe haven’t fared much better and are winless in four such matches in the competition.
Girona & Betis Share Points In La Liga Opener
Last season’s surprise team Girona fought back in their season opener to earn a 1-1 draw at Real Betis on Thursday. Girona had undergone some major changes in the summer with key players such as Savinho, Artem Dovbyk and Aleix Garcia leaving the team. With their debut in the Champions League set to begin later this season, it was unclear how they would fare with their new faces.
Girona quickly fell behind in their match against Betis when Marc Bartra drilled home a header from Nabil Fekir’s corner, just 6 minutes into the match.
Newcomer Abel Ruiz got close to tying up the match at the hour mark but found the post instead of the back of the net. Girona was eventually to level via two substitutes, Iker Almena and Dutch youngster Gabriel Misehouy, who joined this summer from Ajax. Almena sent in a low cross which sliced between two defenders and Misehouy chipped it home..
Chimy Avila from Betis almost pulled his team ahead once again but was denied by the goal post.
The match ended in a 1-1 draw, giving both teams points to begin their campaign with. Next up for Girona will be a tough test with Atletico Madrid next week, while Betis will take on Alaves.
Sevilla Draw Against Las Palmas, 2-2
Sevilla FC traveled to Las Palmas yesterday evening and came out with a 2-2 draw to start the season. It was Sevilla that got the scoring going early on in the piece, through an unfortunate own goal of Alex Suarez in the 25th minute.
The lead didn’t last long however as the gift was quickly returned by the visitors when Tanguy Nianzou Kouassi also helped the ball past his own goalkeeper just before the half.
After the break, Sevilla regained the lead when Juanlu Sanchez scored in the 62nd minute from inside the box. Sandro Ramirez answered once again for Las Palmas just a few minutes later which was the last goal of the match. With a final score of 2-2, Sevilla and Las Palmas are now two points behind Celta, the sole leader of the Spanish championship after their victory against Alavés.
