Mariano Díaz inspires Alavés to 3-0 opening-day win over Getafe

Mariano Díaz produced the decisive performance as Alavés opened the new La Liga season with a 3-0 victory over Getafe.

The forward finished the match with a goal and two assists, helping Alavés take control after a closely contested first half at Mendizorrotza.

Getafe had remained competitive throughout the opening period, but the balance of the game changed shortly before half-time when Kiko Femenía was sent off following a VAR review.

The defender was initially shown a yellow card for his challenge on Abde Rebbach before the referee was advised to review the incident on the pitchside monitor. The decision was upgraded to a red card, leaving Getafe to play the remainder of the match with ten men.

Alavés took advantage after the restart.

Mariano played a central role in creating the opening goal, helping move the attack into a position from which Nahuel Tenaglia was able to break the deadlock and give the hosts the lead.

The former Real Madrid striker then added the second himself, giving Alavés a level of control that Getafe were unable to recover from while playing with a numerical disadvantage.

Mariano remained influential as the game opened up and later contributed his second assist of the evening, with Mikel Rodríguez completing the scoring in stoppage time.

The performance represented an important personal moment for the 33-year-old.

Mariano had not scored in La Liga since his time at Real Madrid in 2022, making his goal against Getafe his first in the competition for more than four years.

His overall contribution was arguably even more significant than the goal itself.

Alavés relied on Mariano not only to occupy Getafe’s central defenders but also to connect attacks and create space for teammates arriving from deeper positions. That involvement was reflected in his two assists and gave the hosts an attacking reference point once the match began to stretch.

The red card inevitably shaped the contest, but Alavés still had to turn their numerical advantage into goals.

They did so with increasing authority in the second half, avoiding the frustration that can sometimes follow when a team faces ten men and finding enough movement around the penalty area to repeatedly create openings.

Starting the season with three goals, a clean sheet and three points gives Alavés an encouraging early platform.

For Mariano, however, the opening night carried additional significance.

After several seasons in which regular goals at La Liga level had been difficult to find, he began the new campaign by directly contributing to all three goals in one of Alavés’ most complete attacking performances.