La Real won the derby at home. The txuri urdin showed their strength in depth and got the win with goals by Sorloth, Kubo and Oyarzabal, who gave Imanol’s side all three points. A fourth consecutive victory in LaLiga keeps Real in a dream position.
The derby got off to a very intense start and la Real almost went ahead in the eight minute when Brais shot from outside the area. However, his strike went just wide of the post. On the other hand, a volley from Iñaki Williams was blocked by Remiro as our team went in search of the opener. La Real had the control of the match whereas Athletic came out on the counter. Before the break, an intelligent Sorloth took advantage of a brave clearance by Zubeldia to open the scoring with a left-footed shot from inside the area. In the 37th minute, Kubo doubled the lead with an amazing goal. He beat Vivian with a subtle chip and, in front of Simon, put the ball inside the near post. Athletic managed to react almost immediately with a fine goal from Sancet, who volleyed a cross-shot past Remiro.
The start of the second half tip the scales in favor of the realistas. A penalty on Kubo by Yeray led to the defender being sent off and Oyarzabal made no mistake from the penalty spot. 3-1. La Real went wild and found it easy to get forward. Brais tried his luck with a right-footed shot that was saved by Simón. In the final minutes and with the game under control, the pace of the match slowed down and the txuri urdin did not allow Athletic to create chances of their own.
A new triumph, special, different, we’ll be savouring the sweet taste of success for days. Moreover, with record attendance at Anoeta. A derby is a derby. And Real is Real. Txuri urdin, txuri urdin maitea, beti beti maite, maite maitea....
Match sheet:
Real Sociedad: Remiro, Aritz (cap)(Gorosabel, min.76), Zubeldia, Le Normand, Rico, Zubimendi, Merino, Silva (Navarro, min.76), Brais Méndez (Illarra, min.89), Take (Barrenetxea, min.76) and Sorloth (Oyarzabal, min.49).
Athletic Club: Unai Simón, De Marcos (cap), Vivian, Yeray, Yuri, Dani García (Zárraga, min.66), Vesga, Sancet (Paredes, min.66), Nico (Muniain, min.76), Williams (Raúl García, min.76) and Guruzeta (Berenguer, min.58).
Goals: 1-0: Sorloth, min.25. 2-0: Take, min.37. 2-1: Sancet, min.40. 3-1: Oyarzabal (pen.), min.63.
Referee: Cuadra Fernández. Booked Take, Sorloth, Zubeldia, Le Normand and Zubimendi for Real Sociedad and Dani García for Athletic Club. Sent off Yeray in the minute 61.
Attendance: 38,342 spectators.