Racing Santander beat Elche 3-2 in their third matchday clash of the La Liga season at El Sarinerio on 28 August 2026. The home side took a commanding lead through Yasir Zabiri before Elche pulled two late goals back, though it was not enough. Racing moved to four points from three games, while Elche remained rooted on one point at the foot of the table.
Zabiri made the difference early, scoring in the 15th minute before adding another just six minutes later. By the 36th minute he had completed his hat-trick, and Racing had already built a cushion that Elche would struggle to breach. To be fair, the visitors had chances later, but the damage had been done in the opening half.
Elche introduced changes at half-time, bringing on Houary and Aguado as they sought to get back into the game. Sangare pulled one back in the 78th minute and Nino equalised a minute later, but Racing had already made their moves, with Zabiri and Buonanotte both coming off in the 69th minute. And here's the thing — the visitors had more possession but could not turn it into clear openings.
The statistics tell a story of imbalance. Elche held 60 per cent of possession and completed 557 passes compared to Racing's 380, yet Racing created four big chances while Elche managed just one. The visitors registered seven shots on target with an expected goals figure of 1.03, but Racing's six shots on target carried an expected goals of 1.72. Shots accuracy was higher for Racing at 46 per cent against 39 per cent for Elche.
For Racing, this was a win that extended a run of matches where they have shown resilience in defence, having conceded in each of their first three games. Elche's recent form speaks for itself — they have lost five of their last six outings across all competitions. By then, the gap between the two sides in the table looked wider than three points suggested.
