La Liga

DIEGO COSTA got away with an outrageous dive as Atletico Madrid moved three points clear at the top of LaLiga with a 3-1 win against Elche.
Luis Suarez scored twice for the hosts before Lucas Boye set nerves on edge with a goal for Elche in the 64th minute.

Diego Costa won a penalty for Atletico Madrid with an outrageous diveCredit: AFP OR LICENSORS

But veteran forward Costa, 32, was on hand to tuck away an 80th minute penalty to make sure of the points for Atleti.
However, Costa also won the spot-kick for his side with a dive worthy of Tom Daley.
The Chelsea legend jumped off the ground to win an aerial duel in the Elche box when he saw a high leg come towards him.
The stray foot quickly moved down without impeding Costa.

But the Spaniard still decided to fling himself to the floor with all four limbs flying.
VAR even checked the incident again to see just what happened.
And even though camera replays show there was zero contact between the Elche player and Costa, Atletico were still awarded the penalty.
The game was the ex-Blues star’s first since he was diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in his right leg last month.

VAR checked the dive but still gave Atleti the spot-kick in their 3-1 win against ElcheCredit: AFP OR LICENSORS

Before that, Costa missed four games with a muscle problem in the same leg and also contracted coronavirus in September.
As a result, he has featured just four times this season for Atleti, and the controversial penalty was Costa’s first goal of the campaign.
He now looks set to face former side Chelsea in the Champions League last-16 after they drew Atletico.
It marks a huge turnaround for Costa, who was being strongly linked with a Wanda Metropolitano exit over the summer.

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LIONEL MESSI’s wages are no longer affordable for Barcelona – a presidential candidate claimed.
The £500k-a-week ace is out of contract in the summer and set to leave the Catalan giants.

Lionel Messi’s wages are a problem for Barcelona – a presidential candidate saysCredit: Rex Features

Emili Rousard wants Lionel Messi to stay but he would have to take a pay cutCredit: Rex Features

The La Liga side are facing financial ruin with £700m debts amid the coronavirus pandemic.
And Emili Rousard – who is bidding to replace former chief Josep Maria Bartomeu – insists he wants Messi to stay but he’d have to take a pay cut.
He told Spanish newspaper AS: “We can’t just cut everywhere, and that’s it because we would become small and we have to think big.
“The future (of the club) is in his hands, but at the moment Leo’s salary is not affordable.

“Messi is a winner and if he goes it won’t be to be paid more. Leo Messi is the player who has given most to Barca in their history and what Messi has given is not quantifiable.
“We won’t speak with the player until we are in power, but the person that brought him to Barcelona is in this bid, Jose Maria Minguella.”
Last month Barcelona players and boss Ronald Koeman agreed pay cuts to save the club from a financial meltdown.
Barcelona had seen their debts double over the course of the 2019-20 season due to the lockdown.

The club has recently been hit with a wage cap of £342m – with the club previously allowed to spend up to £601.5m – a drop of 43 per cent.

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All season long, Barcelona chiefs have been locked in talks with players, pleading with them to accept a pay-cut for the good of the club.
Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Gerard Pique, Frenkie De Jong and Clement Lenglet all signed new deals earlier this month.
They agreed to a temporary pay-cut of 30 per cent at the time of putting pen to paper.

But the rest of the squad stalled on talks, including Messi.
Finally progress was made on Friday, with Koeman and his entire coaching staff all agreeing to cuts.
And now his players have followed suit, agreeing to a help save a combined £110m after many stars initially refused to take a cut.

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ANTOINE GRIEZMANN won’t be able to brush this off easily – as the Barcelona striker wasted a gold-plaited opportunity that was just as jaw-dropping as his new hairstyle.
The Barcelona frontman unveiled long braids before kick-off – but will be set for a parting (from the Spanish giants) if he keeps missing such sitters as in this 2-1 win that deposed LaLiga leaders Real Sociedad.

Barca’s comeback victory lifted Ronald Koeman’s under-fire superstars from eighth to fifth.
But Griezmann had no excuses other than perhaps a bad hair play when he slid the ball straight at Sociedad keeper Alex Remiro from three yards – for which he was mocked on social media.
Barca, though, held on to sink Spain’s surprise package this season.
Brazilian striker Willian Jose prodded Socided in front on 27 minutes.  

But Spain left-back Jordi Alba soon drilled a clinical leveller.
And just before the break VAR intervened to give Barcelona their clincher.
Frenkie de Jong bundled in Alba’s deflected cross from near the penalty spot.
And the Dutch midfielder was celebrating once video replays overturned the initial offside verdict.

Barcelona’s Dutch midfielder Frenkie De Jong celebrates what turns out to be a 43rd-minute winner to knock Real Sociedad off the top of LaLigaCredit: AFP OR LICENSORS

Griezmann even hit the bar from a tight angle after the interval – before his astonishing miss.
But fortunately for the France ace, Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s double save denied Jose and Alexander Isak as Sociedad failed to earn an incredible seventh successive draw.
Sociedad are now sandwiched between leaders Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid, all on 26 points.
Barca are six points adrift of that trio but have two games in hand on Sociedad.

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