Rayo Vallecano achieved its second victory in the Spanish Football League this season, defeating its guest Espanyol, 2-1, on Tuesday, in the match held at the stadium of the city of Leganes, in the sixth round of the competition.
Alvaro Garcia scored Vallecano's goal early in the third minute, then the hosts increased the lead with a second goal in the 26th minute, through Adria Pedroza, and reduced the deficit for the visitors with Roberto Fernandez's only goal in the 54th minute.
The eighth minute of stoppage time in the second half saw Moroccan Omar Hilal, the Espanyol player, sent off.
Vallecano raised his score to 7 points in twelfth place, while Espanyol has the same score, but has a superior goal difference and occupies eighth place.
Espanyol will host Elche in the seventh round, on Friday, while Rayo Vallecano will host Osasuna in the same round the next day.
Hamza Abdel Karim, the Egyptian national team striker, expressed his great happiness at signing a new contract with the Catalan club that extends until the summer of 2030.
Abdel Karim said in a video clip published by the Catalan club’s official account on the “X” platform: “I have an amazing feeling. I am proud of this step, and I cannot wait to continue playing in the shirt of this ancient club.”
The 18-year-old striker added: “Playing for Barcelona is a dream come true, and my family feels proud that I have signed a new contract with the club.”
He continued: “Barcelona has a unique playing style, and it has maintained it for years, and I am trying to learn to adapt to it.”
The former Egyptian Al-Ahly striker went on to praise the German coach, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick, saying: “He is a wonderful coach, and he always supports me, and I also find great support from my colleagues every day to be better, and this is very important.”
When asked, will the Champions League final be played at Camp Nou in 2029? Hamza said: “It would be wonderful and amazing to be able to play it in 2029, especially since I see these cups in this hall.”
The promising player concluded his statements: “I seek to write history with Barcelona and help the team as much as possible. I am happy with the Barcelona fans’ support for me, and I hope to contribute to their happiness.”
Hamza Abdel Karim joined Barcelona last February on loan from Al-Ahly, and began his career playing for the youth team of the Catalan club.
After his promotion to the first team, Hamza Abdel Karim excelled during the preparation period, and was the top scorer for Barcelona in friendly matches by scoring 4 goals, taking advantage of the absence of the team’s stars to rest after participating in the World Cup.
After that, Barcelona activated the clause to buy Hamza Abdel Karim permanently until 2029, before signing a new contract with him to raise the penalty clause in his contract from 15 million euros to 120 million euros, according to Spanish press reports.
Hamza Abdel Karim joined Barcelona's roster during the first 6 matches of this season, and participated as a substitute for a few minutes against Rayo Vallecano in the Spanish League on August 31.
It seems that the technical change in Valencia has paid off, as the “bats” achieved their first victory in the new season of the Spanish Football League, and it came at the expense of their host Alaves 1-0 on Tuesday in the sixth stage.
Valencia decided to terminate the contract of its coach, Carlos Corberan, who took office in December 2024, after finding himself at the bottom of the standings with one point after five stages.
Oscar Sanchez, coach of the reserve team, took over the task temporarily until a new coach was appointed, and he succeeded in giving the “Bats” their first victory thanks to a goal scored in the 78th minute by Luis Rueja against the team that defended its colors from 2019 until 2024.
Thus, Alaves suffered its second defeat and its score froze at 10 in fourth place temporarily on goal difference against Atletico Madrid and Sevilla and a point against Deportivo La Coruna.
Rayo Vallecano achieved its second victory of the season, coming at the expense of its guest, Espanyol, 2-1, in a match that the Catalan club completed the final seconds with ten players after its Moroccan defender, Omar Hilali, was sent off.
Real Madrid will play later with its host Elche.
