The place soccer greats Lionel Messi and Johan Cruyff succeeded, the proficient however mortal midfielders of Rayo Vallecano have come up brief.
The modest Madrid-based membership have been held to a 2-2 draw at dwelling by Girona within the Spanish league after failing with back-to-back penalties – together with a botched trick penalty kick – in a sequence that may go down as one of many oddest in current reminiscence for Spanish soccer.
Isi Palazon and Oscar Trejo had already scored to place their staff forward 2-1 when Rayo had a penalty name of their favor simply earlier than halftime.
Goalkeeper Paulo Gazzaniga saved Trejo’s spot kick, however he bought one other likelihood after the referee ordered the penalty to be retaken as a result of a Girona participant had illegally encroached the realm.
On the second attempt, Trejo, as a substitute of capturing instantly on the objective, rolled the ball to the facet for Isi, who had rushed into the field – just for Isi to fireplace it over the crossbar.
Maybe they’d been impressed by Messi and Luis Suarez, who had pulled off such a nifty trick penalty in a 6-1 win over Celta Vigo in 2016. However although Isi and Trejo have helped eighth-place Rayo surpass expectations this season, they have been unable to match the feat by the Barcelona greats.
The audacious tweak on the usual penalty, which turned a solitary play right into a staff transfer, grew to become well-known after Cruyff executed it whereas taking part in for Ajax in 1982.
The failed penalty marred what had been till then excellent performances by Isi and Trejo. Isi had curled within the opener from outdoors the realm within the 23rd minute, and Trejo had reduce to attain from a good angle within the 34th.
However Ukraine ahead Viktor Tsygankov, who joined Girona from Dynamo Kyiv in January, scored his second objective of the sport within the 52nd to separate the factors.
Rayo has solely transformed three of seven penalties this season.
“I’m apprehensive about our penalties as a result of they’ve value us a number of factors,” Rayo coach Andoni Iraola stated.
He stated his gamers had improvised with the penalty trick.
“It was a choice of Trejo and Isi,” Iraola stated. “I have not spoken to them. These items it’s a must to take into consideration, after which speak about it with a cool head. The one factor I can say is that we didn’t follow that.”
Atletico Madrid elevated their unbeaten streak to 10 video games within the league after rolling to a 3-Zero victory over a hapless Valencia.
Antoine Griezmann, Yannick Carrasco and Thomas Lemar all scored for Diego Simeone’s facet, who haven’t misplaced within the league since falling to Barcelona in early January.
Atletico strengthened their maintain on third place, closing to inside 5 factors of second-place Actual Madrid earlier than they go to leaders Barcelona on Sunday.
The present and future stars of Celta Vigo each scored in a 3-1 win at Espanyol that featured a stellar displaying by Carles Perez, who arrange two objectives earlier than scoring late.
Perez first arrange 20-year-old Gabri Veiga for his ninth league objective of the season.
He subsequent earned a penalty that Iago Aspas transformed for his 12th objective of the marketing campaign, a day after the 35-year-old Aspas was recalled by new Spain coach Luis de la Fuente. Solely Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski with 15 objectives has scored extra within the league.
Gonzalo Melero’s stoppage-time penalty grabbed relegation-threatened Almeria a 1-1 draw with Cadiz.
