Espanyol climbed further away from the relegation zone on Sunday with a resounding 3-0 win over highfliers Valencia.
Unai Emery’s side visited the Catalan outfit with a view to closing the gap on third-placed Sevilla to a point with a win, but instead found the hosts in fighting form.
Espanyol had to wait until the second half to mount their charge however, as goals from Roman Martinez, Nicolas Pareja and a 90th-minute Nene penalty secured a valuable win.
Atletico Madrid overtook Villarreal into fifth place with a 2-0 win at Real Betis, where Diego Forlan scored in each half
Deportivo La Coruna are hot on the heels of Atleti after securing a 1-0 win over Valladolid to move up to sixth place.
Niouoi Lassad’s seventh-minute strike proved to be the difference between the sides against the hapless Valladolid, who were reduced to ten men in the 90th minute when Luis Prieto saw red.
At the bottom end of the table Getafe still hover precariously above the relegation zone following a 2-1 defeat at Mallorca, while Sporting Gijon – who top the bottom three and are level on points with Getafe – drew 1-1 with Bilbao. Cruelly, Gijon were denied victory by a 90th-minute goal from Fernando Amorebieta.
Recreativo breathed fresh life into their bid to beat the drop with a 2-1 win over Osasuna as Ersen Martin and Nasief Maurice struck inside the final ten minutes to deliver a much-needed win, while Almeria remain comfortable in mid-table following their 2-0 win over Racing Santander.