SPANISH SCORING SPREE
Sevilla tops Celta Vigo in seven-goal thriller
MADRID, Spain (AFP) — Sevilla gained an outside chance of rejoining La Liga’s title race on Monday after winning a seven-goal thriller at Celta Vigo.
A second-half double from Ivan Rakitic and Papu Gomez snatched a 4-3 victory for Sevilla, which twice had to come from behind at Balaidos. The comeback puts Sevilla six points behind Atletico Madrid, which drew away at Real Betis on Sunday to give further encouragement to Real Madrid and Barcelona. Zinedine Zidane’s side beat Barca 2-1 in Saturday’s Clasico at the Alfredo di Stefano. For weeks it has looked like only Real Madrid and Barcelona could overhaul struggling Atletico but 13 points from 15 has put Sevilla back in sight of the top three.
Fourth place is all-but secure for Julen Lopetegui’s side, who have a 14-point advantage over fifth-placed Real Sociedad, who they face next weekend. Celta stay 10th.
Zinedine Zidane’s side beat Barca 2-1 in Saturday’s Clasico at the Alfredo di Stefano.
Jules Kounde’s header gave Sevilla an early lead but Celta hit back with two goals in three minutes, both from Iago Aspas, the first from the penalty spot after a foul from Kounde.
Fernando pulled Sevilla level again with a deflected shot, only for Brais Mendez’s superb lob to restore Celta’s lead before Rakitic and Gomez, on as a substitute, sealed a dramatic victory.
Meanwhile in Bogota, The owner of a Colombian football team forced to play a first division match with just seven players after a coronavirus outbreak in the camp, hit out at authorities on Monday.
Aguilas had 16 players unavailable after contracting Covid-19 while another seven were injured, meaning they could only field a team made up of seven players for Sunday’s 3-0 defeat to Boyaca Chico.
“They should have accepted the request to postpone the match,” said Aguilas owner Fernando Salazar in an interview with W Radio.
“It hurts me that today we are subjected to derision and immersed in this situation that could have been avoided.”
He said the club, from Rionegro in the northwest, had sent several requests to Dimayor, the Colombian football league, to postpone the match but they were rejected.
Dimayor president Fernando Jaramillo defended the decision.
“This rule comes from the International Football Association Board; a team must field a minimum of seven players,” Jaramillo told Caracol Radio.