MADRID (AP) — Brais Mendez scored a goal-of-the-season contender as Real Sociedad won at Getafe 2-1 and gave American coach Pellegrino Matarazzo his first win in charge of the Basque club on Friday.
The ball fell kindly for the big midfielder right on the 18-yard line and he struck the sweetest of volleys past a despairing goalkeeper late in the first half.
Juanmi equalized for Getafe in the 90th minute but defender Jon Aramburu gave Sociedad the win when he headed home a corner kick six minutes into stoppage time
The result was a welcome victory for new boss Matarazzo. He replaced Sergio Francisco just before Christmas following Sociedad’s poorest start to a La Liga in a decade.
He led his new charges to a creditable 1-1 draw with Atletico Madrid in his opener and was fortunate that slack goalkeeping at the late corner contributed to his side’s winner in Getafe.
The result lifted Sociedad into the top half of La Liga, equal on points with Getafe but ahead of it on goal difference.
It was the fifth loss in six games for the Madrid club, which halted a four-game losing streak with a last-minute equalizer last week at Rayo Vallecano.
Venezuelan Aramburu dedicated his goal to his compatriots and stressed Matarazzo’s message was that they need points any which way.
“The boss told us this wouldn’t be the prettiest of games but that we just had to go out and win,” Aramburu said.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
Prayer, grounded in divine Love and spiritual law, offers a reliable foundation for healing,… Read moreInspirational Talk on Effective Prayer: Finding healing and wholeness in divine Love
What the Constitution Means to Me Read moreWhat The Constitution Means To Me
Join us for community fun! Free antique and collectible appraisals by Clars Auction. Over 30… Read moreMillbrae Senior Showcase
Dirk van Ulden said:
Yosemite Says said:
jwentworth said:
Dirk van Ulden said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.