Pro Sports

Atletico loses to Villarreal; Barcelona takes 11-point lead

Posted March 18, 2018 7:00 am

By TALES AZZONI

Atletico de Madrid's Griezman, right, vie sof the ball with Villarreal's Alvaro, during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Atletico de Madrid at the ceramica stadium in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, March 18, 2018. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz) The Associated Press

MADRID (AP) - Atletico Madrid's title hopes were further damaged after it conceded two late goals in a 2-1 loss at Villarreal on Sunday, allowing Barcelona to open an 11-point lead in the Spanish league with nine matches remaining.

Second-place Atletico looked set to keep pace with Barcelona until Enes Unal led Villarreal to a come-from-behind win with goals in the 82nd minute and in injury time.

Antoine Griezmann had put Atletico ahead by converting a first-half penalty kick at Ceramica Stadium.

"We were controlling the game well but in the end they took advantage of those two plays," Atletico coach Diego Simeone said. "We have to keep doing what we have been doing, keep trying to win as many points as possible."

Barcelona earlier defeated Athletic Bilbao 2-0 at Camp Nou Stadium with another stellar performance by Lionel Messi, who scored a goal and helped set up the other.

Atletico striker Vitolo was sent off after Villarreal's second goal for shoving an opponent.

Villarreal moved to fifth place with its second straight victory.

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MESSI THRIVES AGAIN

Messi added to his scoring streak with a first-half goal in Barcelona's win against Athletic, netting his eighth goal in six matches with a firm, low shot from outside the area in the 30th minute. He was also involved in the runup to Barcelona's first goal, a shot by Paco Alcacer from near the penalty spot after a low cross by Jordi Alba.

"Every day Messi shows he can do something different," said Alcacer, who hadn't scored in nearly three months.

Messi set the pace from the start and Barcelona was always in control at Camp Nou, comfortably earning its fourth straight win in all competitions.

The Argentina playmaker had scored twice in Barcelona's 3-0 win over Chelsea in the Champions League on Wednesday, helping the Catalan club reach the quarterfinals of the European competition.

Messi took his Spanish league-leading scoring tally to 25 goals, four more than teammate Luis Suarez and seven ahead of Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo.

Messi has scored at least a goal in his last six matches. He did not play in Barcelona's 2-0 win at Malaga in the previous league round because of the birth of his third son.

Athletic dropped to 13th in the 20-team standings.

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SEVILLA AT RISK

Sevilla lost 2-1 to Leganes, putting at risk its chances of securing a Europa League spot.

The loss in southern Madrid could drop Sevilla to seventh in the standings, the last qualification spot for the second-tier European competition. It had already lost fifth place when Villarreal defeated Atletico Madrid 2-1, and it could also be surpassed by Girona, which plays later Sunday at Real Madrid.

Sevilla's recent struggles in the league left it virtually out of contention for a Champions League spot. It trails fourth-place Madrid by 12 points.

Sevilla was coming off a loss to third-place Valencia in the previous round. It stayed alive in the Champions League by eliminating Manchester United in the round of 16 on Tuesday.

Unai Bustinza put Leganes in front with a header in the 41st minute at Butarque Stadium, sending the ball over goalkeeper Sergio Rico after a pass by Nabil El Zhar across the penalty area.

Javier Eraso added to the lead for the hosts in the 69th with a shot from near the penalty spot after a low cross by Diego Rico. Sevilla's lone goal was scored by Miguel Layun in the 90th.

Sevilla midfielder Pablo Sarabia was sent off in the 84th for a hard foul that prompted a second yellow card.

It was the second win in three matches for Leganes, which earlier had endured an eight-game winless streak.

Leganes was eliminated by Sevilla in the semifinals of the Copa del Rey last month.

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CELTA HELD

Celta Vigo could not manage more than a 0-0 draw against last-place Malaga, moving further away from a Europa League spot.

The disappointing performance at home left Celta in 10th place.

Malaga, which has only 14 points from 29 matches, had lost seven straight games.

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More AP Spanish soccer coverage: https://apnews.com/tag/LaLiga

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Tales Azzoni on Twitter: http://twitter.com/tazzoni

Atletico de Madrid's Angel Correa, right, duels for the ball with Villarreal's Jaume Costa during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Atletico de Madrid at the ceramica stadium in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, March 18, 2018. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz) The Associated Press

Atletico de Madrid's Antoine Griezman, right, controls the ball with Villarreal's Alvaro Gonzalez during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Atletico de Madrid at the ceramica stadium in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, March 18, 2018. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz) The Associated Press

Atletico de Madrid's Angel Correa, left, duels for the ball with Villarreal's Soriano, during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Atletico de Madrid at the ceramica stadium in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, March 18, 2018. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz) The Associated Press

Atletico de Madrid's Griezman, center, is congratulated by teammates after scoring a goal against Villarreal during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Villarreal and Atletico de Madrid at the ceramica stadium in Villarreal, Spain, Sunday, March 18, 2018. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz) The Associated Press

FC Barcelona's Lionel Messi, center, duels for the ball against Athletic Bilbao's Unai Nunez, left, during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between FC Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, March 18, 2018. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez) The Associated Press

FC Barcelona's Lionel Messi, right, duels for the ball against Athletic Bilbao's Unai Nunez, left, during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between FC Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona, Spain, Sunday, March 18, 2018. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez) The Associated Press

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