Real Sociedad take a two-goal advantage to Pittodrie for the second leg of their Europa League tie after goals from David Zurutuza and Sergio Canales secured a 2-0 win against Aberdeen.

Both sides started the game evenly, with Sociedad seeing slightly more of the ball. Though as Aberdeen began to see more of the ball, they became difficult for La Real to handle, and were fairly dominant in the first 15-20 minutes.

There were several flying challenges early on in the game, with Adam Rooney getting the first yellow card of the game after an elbow on Iñigo Martinez, although just a couple of minutes prior to the elbow, a strong studs-up challenge from one of the Aberdeen midfield sparked calls for a red card, though the referee simply pulled the player to the side and told him to calm down.

There were penalty calls from Sociedad midway through the first half, as new signing Alfreð Finnbogason was hauled down in the penalty area. Nothing was given from the referee, although replays showed clear contact with the player and not the ball.

Signs of Antoine Griezmann's departure were evident, not only in the team, but within the stadium, as the 23,000 fans that were at the game were fairly hushed throughout. The lack of Sergio Canales on the pitch also showed, as Sociedad lacked any sort of cutting edge in the final third. 

Sociedad couldn't find a way to break the Aberdeen defence down in the first half, as shots were being struck from 30+ yards out with no real danger being made to Jamie Langfield's goal. Finnbogason's effort was the closest that the home side came to scoring, but his chip went wide of the post from close range.

Half-time: Real Sociedad 0-0 Aberdeen

The beginning of the second half was a total contrast to the first, as Sociedad came out all guns blazing. Finnbogason looked eager to grab his first competitve goal for his new club, after joining from SC Heerenveen for £6m. His early chance was close, but not close enough, as he dragged his shot wide of the post. 

The deadlock was finally broken on 54 minutes, as Finnbogason's shot wasn't properly cleared, and midfielder David Zurutuza capitalised on the poor clearance to smash the ball into the roof of the goal from around four yards out.

Minutes later, Markel made his way up from the defence to hit a shot at the goal, and almost doubled Sociedad's advantage, his fierce strike clipping the top of the crossbar on its way to a goal kick.

The second Sociedad goal followed shortly after. Sergio Canales made his way onto the pitch an hour into the game, and his impact was instantaneous. After getting possession of the ball around 30 yards out, the Spaniard, formerly of Real Madrid, struck a poorly-hit shot, though the ball squirmed under Jamie Langfield and into the goal.

There were more penalty shouts and even calls for a third goal to be allowed. The referee dismissed both calls, the penalty shout from Aberdeen and the possibilty of a third goal for Sociedad. 

Full-time: Real Sociedad 2-0 Aberdeen

The game was a well-fought but deserved victory for La Real, with the second goal from Canales making the step to the play-off round that much harder for Aberdeen. An away goal may have given them the upper hand at Pittodrie in front of their own fans, but it'll take something special for the Dons to qualify for the next round of the Europa League.