A compilation of some of the most interesting La Liga stories of the week, we go through the good, the bad and the good.
The Good – Futbol is back, Papa!
At least the way they like it at Getafe. Villarreal may not be enjoying their best period of form this season, but they remain third in La Liga, third best in attack and third best in defence. They started the game with a summer investment worth €42 million, and later brought in €31 million striker Georges Mikautadze as they chased the game. In contrast, Getafe spent €1.8m on two players in the summer, neither played, and the last players they cost in the XI returned in 2022, Luis Milla (€5m) and Domingos Duarte (€750k).
And they were absolutely celebrated on the Getafe side. The fans at the Coliseum are among the most demanding in La Liga, but they have also been thirsty for some liquid in recent weeks. After their 2-1 win over Alaves last week, Jose Bordalas’ side came out with absolute arrogance, the bully on the pitch and the new kid. Expensive taste, this new guy, but if he thinks he can get into my money without paying for it…
Every time Villarreal tried to press, Getafe’s players seemed to know where they were coming from. Marcelino Garcia Toral spoke of Villarreal’s inexperienced defence, while January loan signings Martin Satriano and Luis Vazquez sniffed it like fuel to their engines. It’s true the penalty, absurd as Marcelino called it, helped Getafe on their way, but Vazquez won the position, giving Renato Veiga the slip. When he got up from the floor, both Vazquez and Marcelino shot him the same way – ‘Slow down, you fool’.
It’s not just that Getafe has shown intellectual agility. With Dakonam Djene in midfield, Mauro Arambarri and Luis Milla were given license to roam as they wished, and found ways to keep Villarreal in trouble. Just silly, I was watching Milla and Arambarri play two-touch football around a midfield featuring Dani Parejo and Pape Gueye.
Bordalás had his vitamins, Marcelino was laughing, because if you don’t laugh, you have to cry. #GetafeCF #Villarreal #GetafeVillarreal pic.twitter.com/mSYsVyYB84
– Ruairidh Barlow (@RuriBarlow) February 14, 2026
Los Azulones reached 11th place, with five points before falling, but this was their groove, Bordalas-ball in a simple and effective way. It is led by the hot Luis Milla, the equivalent of Lamine Yamal at the top of the assistant table, who spent time joking about Spain’s call-up on the radio in the press room afterwards. It was a win that came a month and two days after Bordalas’ pencil rang out, when it looked as if the Getafe we hate, love, so annoying and so frustrating, might collapse. But here they were, strong and cantankerous, five loans and after a month. Esto es futbol, Papa.
Bad: Rayo and Atletico – Nobody wins like this
After beating Barcelona 4-0, which raised real cup hopes and gave an idea of what Atletico Madrid wants to be, Diego Simeone made nine changes. Having played out a 3-3 draw with Club Brugge on Wednesday, we now have the hindsight that it wasn’t worth it. Their strong performance, marked by the lack of imagination and spirit of rebellion that Simeone must have instilled, wiped the smile off Atletico’s face. Any semblance of Thursday cheer was gone, and so was the football team.
It is true that they were met by a strong Rayo, who played with the desire to take the survival of the first division into their own hands. Ilias Akhomach came out to the defenders as if they had been added to a bad kind of football cinema. Nobel Mendy and Florian Lejeune tested and rated Alexander Sorloth as a basketball center.
This was not Rayo Vallecano though. It was just Rayo, removed, without the Bukaneros ultras, the spirit, the ownership and the people that kept the club going. The match was played at Leganes’ Butarque stadium in front of 5,500 fans, in an empty stadium, most of them feeling empty. Rayo exited the draw, having lost three games, but Inigo Perez entered the press room with all the joy of being relegated. “On a sporting level it’s one of the best days we’ve had, but unfortunately we can’t separate it from the emotional stuff. It’s impossible to separate them. Today is a sad day.” For one day, hopefully one day only, President Raul Martin Presa got what he wanted – Rayo from Vallecas.
#RayoVallecano not in the relegation zone, but not in Vallecas, and it’s sad about it
Also: Disagreement between Jan Oblak and Diego Simeone, after a painful performance.#AtleticoMadrid #RayoAtleti pic.twitter.com/sn0HRt6GEi
– Ruairidh Barlow (@RuriBarlow) February 15, 2026
Good: Organization vs Improvisation
Football is proof that society as a whole does not have to be married to one style, one philosophy, that there is diversity. On Saturday, Celta Vigo scored one of the goals of the season, a series of dominoes that were replaced, when Javi Rodriguez and Borja Iglesias went through in the first half. No player took more than three touches in his 19-pass run before Ferran Jutgla sidestepped the ball into an open net. Notably, none of the passes qualify themselves, and none of the touches are decisive. The goal is repeated, the execution is good.
🩵 GOLAZO with the seal of Claudio Giráldez.
LALIGA Highlights | @RCelta pic.twitter.com/58Ir60Ztrj
— LALIGA (@LaLiga) February 17, 2026
Apologies to Valencia coach Carlos Corberan for not giving him the same credit as Claudio Giraldez in this instance, even if Largie Ramazani also has a contender for goal of the season. It was the goal of a different era, when each football player came up with a solution automatically, and his talent did the rest. Just three passes in, Javi Guerra beat the midfielder just outside his box, driving forward into the Levante half and playing Umar Sadiq in behind. The ball is a little short for the Nigerian, who lifts it forward again, and seeing the horizon of the field close behind Luis Rioja, he makes a slow stop.
La obra de arte de @LRamazani88 🖼️⚽️#LevanteUDValencia | #LALIGAHighlights pic.twitter.com/UaqX20fJ3i
— Valencia CF (@valenciacf) February 17, 2026
Desperate to continue the move, he sees Ramazani in a gap on the edge of the box, but he doesn’t have time to play it the way he likes, rushing to pass. It bounces, not quite in Ramazani’s way, and his control has improved – the finish, when he runs, with his weak foot, is very nice. Four players, none of them doing everything the way they wanted to, combined to entice any football fan.
