Alaves 5-2 Osasuna: Boyé Hat-Trick Tears Osasuna Apart in Vitoria Rout

Right. Let's not dress this up. Deportivo Alaves put five past Osasuna at home on Sunday evening and the only real question worth asking is how Osasuna let it get this bad. The basics were not there. The desire to compete for the full ninety minutes was not there. When a team concedes five at this level, something has gone wrong well before kick-off. End of.

Boyé Does the Damage

Lucas Boyé was the story of this match. Three goals. One in the 27th minute, one in the 51st, one in the 68th. Right foot, right foot, header. He was a constant threat and Osasuna's defence had no answers for him from the first whistle. Mariano Díaz added a second in the 36th minute with a right-foot finish, assisted by Boyé himself, and at that point you could see where this was heading.

The thing is, Alaves went into this match in good shape. Three wins from their last five in La Liga, including a 3-0 win over Getafe and a 1-0 win over Villarreal. There was momentum there. There was confidence. You could see it in how they played. They were direct, they were organised, and when chances came they took them. That is what accountability looks like. You get the opportunity, you finish it. Boyé did exactly that.

Osasuna's Brief Fight

Listen, credit where it is due. Osasuna were not completely rolled over. Ante Budimir pulled one back with a header right on the stroke of half-time, and then converted a penalty in the 64th minute to make it 3-2. For a spell in the second half there was a game here. Osasuna won 46 duels to Alaves's 35. They had 51 per cent possession. On paper they competed in certain areas.

But here is the problem. Competing in certain areas is not competing. It is turning up. And the moment Boyé headed in his third goal four minutes after Budimir's penalty, Osasuna were done. Completely done. That response told you everything about the attitude in the Alaves dressing room. They were not going to let this slip. They were not interested in letting Osasuna back into it. They wanted five and they got five.

Osasuna had managed two wins and one draw from their last five in La Liga coming into this one, with two losses as well, and their longer form over ten matches tells an even bleaker story: three wins, one draw, and six defeats. That is a team struggling to find consistency. They started well in August but the foundations underneath were never solid. Today exposed that completely.

The Numbers Tell the Story

Alaves had eight shots on goal across the match, five on target. They scored five from those eight attempts. That is ruthlessness. That is standards. Osasuna had five shots in total and four on target, conceding twice from the penalty spot and from a header at the death. The conversion rate across the match favoured Alaves in every meaningful way.

Alaves also hit the woodwork once, meaning they were even closer to making this even more uncomfortable. Their dangerous attack count stood at 35 to Osasuna's 29. They were the sharper team, the more direct team, and on the days when the basics are executed properly, that is what you get. Goals. Results. Points.

Osasuna made three substitutions at the sixty-minute mark, bringing on Jonathan Dubasin, Raúl Moro, and Rockson Yeboah. Three changes at once after going 3-1 down tells you the manager knew his team were not competing at the required level. Whether those changes were made from a position of tactical clarity or from panic is a separate conversation. What matters is the scoreboard did not shift in their favour after those changes. Alaves added two more.

What This Means

The head-to-head record between these two sides is a small sample but it pointed in one direction. Alaves had not won in two previous La Liga meetings, with one Osasuna win and one draw. Both previous matches went over 2.5 goals. Today settled any debate about who the better side currently is. Alaves were superior in every area that matters: desire, execution, accountability when the big moments arrived.

Boyé's hat-trick will rightly take the headlines, but this was a full-team performance. Mariano Díaz contributed his goal and his assist in the first half before being substituted in the 71st minute. Carles Aleñá was involved in the build-up to Boyé's second goal in the 51st minute. The structure held. The attitude was right throughout. When Osasuna had their little spell around the 64th minute and made it 3-2, Alaves did not panic. They came back immediately and killed the match.

That is the mark of a team that knows what it wants. That is standards. That is the basics done properly at the highest level. You cannot ask for more than that.

The Verdict

Alaves were brilliant. Boyé was outstanding. Osasuna had no answers and very few excuses. A 5-2 defeat in La Liga on your travels is a result that demands a hard look at yourself. The desire and attitude were not where they needed to be for the majority of this match. Alaves punished every lapse, every moment of slackness, every time Osasuna switched off. When you come up against a striker in that kind of form and your defensive shape is not right, this is what happens. Five goals. A heavy defeat. A long journey home. End of.