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Nothing happened, and then the man in the carbon mask seemed to turn everything upside down. Real and Athletic held on with little courage and a hint of fear when, from a lateral foul by Brais, Yuri’s rebound landed in the small area at the feet of Le Normand and the thunderfall was revealed.
3
Remiro, Zubeldia, Le Normand (Jon Pacheco, Min. 61), Tierney (Aihen Muñoz, Min. 25), Hamari Traore, Merino (Beñat Turrientes, Min. 81), Martín Zubimendi, Barrenetxea (Oyarzabal, Min. 61), Take Kubo, Sadiq (André Silva, min. 61) and Brais
0
Unai Simón, Daniel Vivian (Aitor Paredes, Min. 75), Yuri, De Marcos, Yeray, Nico Williams (Berenguer, Min. 63), Ander Herrera (Benat Prados, Min. 71), Muniain (Raúl García, Min. 71 ), Dani García, Williams and Guruzeta (Villalibre, min. 45)
Goals 1-0 min 29: Le Normand. 2:0 minutes. 48: Take Kubo. 3:0 minutes. 65: Oyarzabal.
referee Jesus Gil Manzano
Yellow cards Ander Herrera (min. 28), Daniel Vivian (min. 43), Merino (min. 44) and Zubeldia (min. 77)
The derby was silly after Real’s initial push, as befits a host, but it died down as the minutes passed as Athletic calmed their nerves, the game going evenly to the point of bordering on boring. Lots of fighting, yes; Lots of sweat in the warm night of San Sebastian after a day full of beaches but little football. The tyrant Kubo couldn’t break free as he was well tied up by Yuri, and although Barrenetxea showed some flashes, it wasn’t enough to take care of Sadiq, a gladiator without the ball near his sphere of influence.
Athletic’s wings, with Williams’s on either side, also couldn’t find a way, not even when Tierney was injured after a race. The engine room occupied by Herrera and Dani García had a lot to do to neutralize the abandonment of Brais, Merino or Zubimendi, so the contribution was minimal.
The game was moving towards the flat encephalogram when Brais’s foul hit ricocheted off Yeray’s back and Yuri’s side and fell to Le Normand, who was protecting his face with a mask after a heavy blow he suffered against Getafe and the one unexpected gift found That ended with the gate opening the can. So yes, Athletic took a step forward and Nico Williams was involved in two passes, the first to Guruzeta who headed high and the second to his brother Iñaki who scored all the goal for him but went wide.
After a month full of successes, the Athletic player’s vision in front of the goal disappeared because he had barely started the second half when he had another ball to equalize, which he missed again by just a few centimeters. And this lack of precision in the shot became a red and white grave, because in the next action a long ball that Brais played towards Sadiq could not be controlled by the Nigerian, he barely touched it, but it fell freely to Kubo, who had passed there and was relentless against Unai Simón, trying to double the Royalists’ lead.
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And nothing was the same anymore, because Anoeta celebrated the result and the red and whites pondered an unexpected result, because in reality nothing still happened, except that when they looked into the light, their vision blurred with what they were reading. They felt as if their wallet had been accidentally stolen, not understanding that football is just that and that the smartest, the most punctual and the most effective wins. If there is quality and Real Sociedad is overwhelmed from all sides, no further explanation is needed. The answers were in the field.
With no arguments since the second goal, Athletic only seemed to be hoping for a miracle, but that didn’t happen. The derby had a blue and white color, and even more so after Oyarzabal scored the third goal for his team when Unai Simón headed a ball in the middle of the field to boost the career of his captain, who responded with goals – he has three in his report – to the criticism he began to receive for his performance, which Imanol always rejected. He left the pitch happy, like his teammates, after scoring a goal and Athletic signing the ceasefire.
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