Eto'o double pushes Barcelona closer to title
Barcelona had to come from behind after an early goal by Getafe but the Spanish league leaders eventually got into their stride to triumph 3-1 over their visitors from Madrid.
Barcelona had to come from behind after an early goal by Getafe but the Spanish league leaders eventually got into their stride to triumph 3-1 over their visitors from Madrid.
Two second half goals from the Spanish first division's top scorer Samuel Eto'o secured the three points after a shaky start.
"Getafe's goal served to wake us up. In this respect, the team know how to suffer in order to win," reflected Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard.
Barca move one step closer to their second successive La Liga title, and their 18th in total, with a 14-point advantage over their nearest rival Real Madrid ahead of the rest of the midweek matches.
"The league title is getting ever closer. If we carry on winning every game then we'll be the champions," commented Barca's Dutch defender Giovanni Van Bronckhorst.
Barca's fans, packing the Nou Camp close to its 98,000 capacity, clearly believe the title is already in their grasp and spent the last 20 minutes noisily chanting, "Campeones, campeones."
"I don't see any other team that can catch Barca," said Getafe coach Bernd Schuster, himself a former Barcelona player.
"If Real Madrid didn't have injuries and were in good from they might have a chance but I think it's going to be just a few weeks before Barcelona are proclaimed champions," added Schuster.
Barcelona had to bounce back from an early shock when Nano Macedo latched onto a cross by Mario Cotelo and headed the visitors ahead from the edge of the six yard box after just four minutes.
Barca nearly equalised four minutes later when Ludovic Giuly hit the post. The hosts finally got on level terms after 21 minutes thanks to an own goal from Getafe defender Anibal Matellan.
A point-blank Giuly header hit the luckless Argentine, who was standing less than a metre out of the goal, on the chest and the ball edged past the outstretched arm of Getafe goalkeeper Luis Garcia.
Getafe could have easily come back into the game on the half hour but Barca got a lucky let-off when Nano found the net again but was questionably ruled offside.
Barca were a world away from their top form for most of the first 45 minutes but Rijkaard must have uttered a few magic words during the break.
"We were without a rhythm in the first half," admitted Rijkaard after the game.
Samuel Eto'o put the hosts ahead just six minutes after half time, sending a right foot shot home from 10 metres out after the outstanding Giuly had provided the service.
Eto'o then added his second of the night, 22nd of the season and 100th of his first division career, 21 minutes from time after Ronaldinho provided a defence-splitting pass to the African Player of the Year.
Among the ecstatic crowd was Barcelona hero Ronald Koeman, the goal scorer in their only European Cup triumph in 1992, who is now the coach of Benfica.
Barca face the Portuguese side in the Champions League quarter-finals with the first leg being played in Lisbon next Tuesday.
Second-placed Real Madrid travel to Real Zaragoza on Wednesday, where they humiliatingly lost 6-1 in the Spanish Cup last month, having not scored a goal in their last three games.
"But we can put the bad times behind us if we have a good game and win," said Real coach Juan Ramon Lopez Caro optimistically on Tuesday.
Three-time World Player of the Year Ronaldo is expected to return to the starting lineup in place of Antonio Cassano but Lopez Caro has midfield worries.
England captain David Beckham is still struggling with a groin strain sustained two weeks ago while Jose Maria 'Guti' Gutierrez is suspended.
Valencia and Osasuna are third and fourth respectively, both one point behind Real and separated only by goal difference.
The 2004 champions play host to local rivals Villarreal while Osasuna entertain struggling Real Sociedad on Wednesday.