Week one in La Liga passed by in a blur and we’re already preparing for the second week of action in the Primera Division. Time flies when you’re having fun.
La Liga, Week 2 preview and fixtures: The scheduling computer wasn’t creative this week
There are some decent matches in Spain’s top flight this week but the schedule is definitely lacking any marquee games to really keep us glued to our screens.
Denis Doyle
I’ll be offering my thoughts on which of the week’s action into the “must watch”, “if you have time” and “you can probably skip” matches for the neutral fan. To help with breaking things down, I’ll be picking a band each week and three of their songs -- a great song, a good song and a “meh” song -- and matching them up with the corresponding category. It probably sounds way more complicated than it is and describing it ends up be way harder than just doing.
Remember this isn’t an exact science. There will probably be weeks where all the “must watch” matches are duds and all the “you can probably skip” matches are instant classics. I’m just going to do my best to guide you towards the games that should be entertaining and important in the league table.
This week I’ll be helped by the Australian rock band Men At Work because there’s plenty of work to be done this week in La Liga.
Please note that some of these songs may contain explicit language so please be aware of that before hitting play without your headphones on.
1983’s “It’s a Mistake” is Men At Work’s best song. Everyone knows “Land Down Under” but this is a better tune. Nice beat, good lyrics, it’s my pick for their best work.
It’s a perfect choice for this week’s must watch matches in Spain.
Elche vs. Real Sociedad | Saturday - 1:00 pm ET, 7:00 pm CEST
Admittedly this game should be an easy win for La Real but as I said in last week’s preview, they are fun to watch and you should be tuning in to see them play. After a strong Champions League playoff round performance against Lyon, Jagoba Arrasate may choose to rest a few players but that shouldn’t hurt his team.
Atletico Madrid vs. Rayo Vallecano | Sunday - 1:00 pm ET, 7:00 pm CEST
Yes it's early in the season but this is second place vs. third place! Atletico Madrid were stellar in their win over Sevilla last week and Rayo hammered newly promoted Elche so this will likely be a fun game to watch. Atletico should win this of course, but it's a nice early season test for Rayo and chance to see how they stack up against one of the league's better sides.
Malaga vs. Barcelona | Sunday - 3:00 pm ET, 9:00 pm CEST
Malaga were every bit as poor as we expected last week in their loss against Valencia and it's going to be a long, tough season for The Anchovies. Barcelona will probably be without Lionel Messi who injured his thigh in Barca's Spanish Super Cup first leg against Atletico on Wednesday, but they'll be alright. Cesc Fabregas or Neymar could certainly replace him in the middle, though I think Cesc is the likely candidate. It's also another chance to see how Barca is developing under new coach Tata Martino.
I like “Who Can it Be Now” but it’s not as good as my top pick this week from Men At Work. It’s gets a little repetitive and the saxophone hook wears on your ears by the end of the song.
It’s good, but not great, just like these matches from the second week in La Liga.
Athletic Bilbao vs. Osasuna | Saturday - 4:00 pm ET, 10:00 pm CEST
Athletic struggled a bit last week against Valladolid but they won and that's what matters. The pieces certainly appear to be in place but there's still some work to be done as new coach Ernesto Valverde settles in. Osasuna lost against Granada in what will probably be the first of many losses for them this season.
Villarreal vs. Real Valladolid | Sunday - 5:00 pm ET, 11:00 pm CEST
Villarreal were involved in one of last week’s most exciting matches as they came from behind to beat Almeria. Granted you’d rather not be having to make dramatic comebacks against the likes of Almeria but a win is a win. This should be another good test of where Villarreal is at this point.
Real Betis vs. Celta Vigo | Sunday - 5:00 pm ET, 11:00 pm CEST
This match is interesting in terms of the long terms aspirations of both teams. If Real Betis want to fight for a European place, they need to take care of Celta. If Celta wants to overachieve and stay out of the relegation fight, they need to get results against teams like Betis from time to time. Despite losing to Madrid, Betis played very well and should have more than enough to bounce back with three points.
Granada vs. Real Madrid | Monday - 3:00 pm ET, 9:00 pm CEST
Real Madrid needed a late goal to avoid a second straight season opening draw at home. Granada's win over Osasuna was a nice start but this is an entirely different assignment. Madrid should smash them to pieces, which would be fun to watch. If Madrid doesn't and this is a close match, that will be fun to see as well. It's a win, win.
This is easily Men At Work’s best know song, but come on, it’s ridiculous. Any video that opens with a guy in a wrestling singlet playing a tune on empty bottles deserves ridicule. In addition have you ever had Vegemite? I have. It’s really gross.
You’ve heard it a thousand times, it can be passed up, just like these games from week two.
Getafe vs. Almeria | Friday - 2:00 pm ET, 8:00 pm CEST
Potential relegation candidates battling it out in the second week always get the blood boiling...or not.
Espanyol vs. Valencia | Sunday - 3:00 pm ET, 9:00 pm CEST
Neither Valencia or Espanyol were particularly impressive in their openers and this could very well end up being a rather drab match.
Levante vs. Sevilla | Sunday - 3:00 pm ET, 9:00 pm CEST
Nothing against Sevilla -- they played well against Atletico last week but ran out of gas late -- but Levante were awful against Barcelona and anything less than a multi-goal victory will not be acceptable. I’m not expecting much from this match honestly.
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