MX23RW : Monday, November 25 17:22:02| >> :60:1268:1268:
[monks data]
Attendance: 27,322
Real Sociedad logo
La Liga | Gameweek 37
May 12, 2019 at 5.30pm UK
 
Real Madrid logo

3-1

Merino (26'), Zaldua (57'), Barrenetxea (67')
FT(HT: 1-1)
Diaz (6')

Zidane refuses to shed light on Bale's Real Madrid future as he talks up Diaz

Zidane refuses to shed light on Bale's Real Madrid future as he talks up Diaz
© Reuters
Madrid lost in Sociedad without Bale.

Zinedine Zidane praised former Manchester City midfielder Brahim Diaz but would not speculate over the future of Gareth Bale following Real Madrid's 3-1 defeat at Real Sociedad.

The Madrid coach left Bale out of his squad for the penultimate game of the season amid talk of a summer move away from the LaLiga club for the Wales international.

Sociedad won with goals from Mikel Merino, Joseba Zaldua and Ander Barrenetxea after Diaz gave the visitors an early lead.

Brahim Diaz drew praise from Zinedine Zidane for his opening goal
Brahim Diaz drew praise from Zinedine Zidane for his opening goal (Alvaro Barrientos/AP)

To make matters worse for the visitors they had Jesus Vallejo sent off in the first half for handball although Thibaut Courtois did save Willian Jose's resulting spot-kick.

Zidane said of Diaz: "He has played well. He is a good player and very interesting.

"He's young, we'll see what happens next year. He has had minutes and he has done well," the Frenchman added on the club website.

On Bale, he said: "We'll see if he's going to be (playing) next week. He's fine physically. We will see the next game and next year. It's clear what I've done for this week."

Zinedine Zidane was encouraged by his side's quick start against Real Sociedad
Zidane was encouraged by his side's quick start against Real Sociedad (Alvaro Barrientos/AP)

Zidane was encouraged by his side's positive start to the game.

He said: "I liked the start of the game, we started well and scored. After the goal scored by Real Sociedad, another match began.

"It was a shame because we played a good game and had opportunities, even with 10. For us, it is better that it's over now.

"The second part has been complicated, but even with 10 it has been back and forth and we had chances to score.

Ander Barrenetxea scored the final goal for Real Sociedad as his side won 3-1
Ander Barrenetxea scored the final goal for Real Sociedad as his side won 3-1 (Alvaro Barrientos/AP)

"When you start well and finish like that, it is complicated, especially for the players because of the effort they have made."

Diaz opened the scoring with six minutes played as he evaded three tackles to slot home. But Sociedad were level 20 minutes later as Merino took his time before beating Courtois.

In a busy first half Real Sociedad also had an effort by Mikel Oyarzabal chalked off following a lengthy VAR review and the visitors were reduced to 10 men when Vallejo was dismissed for handball in the area.

However, Courtois guessed the right way to keep out a poor spot-kick from Jose to keep the scores level at the break.

Zaldua headed in the second before Barrenetxea wrapped up the victory with 23 minutes left.

ga('create', 'UA-72310761-1', 'auto', {'name': 'pacontentapi'});
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'referrer', location.origin);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension1', 'By Press Association Sport staff');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension2', '36a5bd50-b84c-4d2b-a7d6-58f5bbc8d1ca');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension3', 'paservice:sport,paservice:sport:club-news,paservice:sport:football,paservice:sport:match-reports,paservice:sport:uk,paservice:sport:world');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension6', 'story');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension7', 'composite');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension8', null);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension9', 'sport:football');
ga('pacontentapi.send', 'pageview', { 'location': location.href, 'page': (location.pathname + location.search + location.hash), 'title': 'Zidane refuses to shed light on Bale\u2019s Real Madrid future as he talks up Diaz'});

ID:359092: cacheID:359092:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:8704:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Eden Hazard in Chelsea training on May 1, 2019
Read Next:
Maurizio Sarri still unsure of Eden Hazard's Chelsea future
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Barcelona14111242142834
2Real Madrid1393128111730
3Atletico MadridAtletico148512181329
4Villarreal137422521425
5Athletic Bilbao146532013723
6Osasuna146441922-322
7GironaGirona146352018221
8Mallorca146351312121
9Real BetisBetis145541616020
10Real Sociedad145361111018
11Celta Vigo145362224-218
12Sevilla145361318-518
13Rayo Vallecano134451314-116
14Leganes143561319-614
15Getafe142751011-113
16AlavesAlaves144191524-913
17Las PalmasLas Palmas143381825-712
18Valencia122461219-710
19Espanyol133191226-1410
20Real ValladolidValladolid142391027-179


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!