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29.03.2010 13:14

Spanish League Roundup Week 29

Nick Bedson

Valencia and Sevilla slipped further off the pace this weekend as the top two continued their relentless battle at the top of the table ahead of the big game in the Bernabeu.

Madrid derby goes Real’s way

Real Madrid followed on from their midweek victory over Getafe to record a 3-2 win over Atletico, one of the three teams from the Spanish capital to feature in La Liga this season. Atletico took the lead in the first half through former Sevilla, Real Madrid and Arsenal star Reyes, but despite not playing at their best, Real hit back with three goals in thirteen minutes in the second half before Forlan scored a second for Atletico from the penalty spot to leave the final score at 3-2.

Valencia and Sevilla slip further behind

The gap between Real Madrid and Barca in first and second places, and Valencia in third place, widened to an astonishing 21 points this weekend. Valencia crashed to a surprising 3-0 defeat against relegation possibles Zaragoza but remain comfortably in third place six points clear of Mallorca in fourth. The absence of injured striker David Villa will inevitably support the view that Valencia are too dependant on the Spanish international’s goals.

Sevilla’s first match under new manager Antonio Alvaro started badly as Villarreal stormed to a 2-0 lead after just 17 minutes. Former Arsenal star Pires added a third in the final minute of the match to leave Sevilla in fifth place three points ahead of Athletic Club Bilbao in sixth. Bilbao take on Racing Santander in San Mames on Monday evening so a win would put them on level pegging with Sevilla with 45 points. As for Villarreal, they move to within two points of the Europa League.

Deportivo seem to be going off the boil at just the wrong moment as they face the final run-in of the league campaign. They slumped to a 1-3 home defeat against Getafe to make it three league defeats in a row. They stay in seventh place only separated from a Europa League finish by goal difference but manager Lotina will need to address this alarming downturn in results. Meanwhile, Getafe now occupy joint eighth place with Villarreal.

The struggle continues for Jerez

Bottom club Jerez seem determined to fight for First Division survival right to the end. At the weekend they demolished fellow relegation strugglers Valladolid 3-0 to pull themselves to within seven points of Zaragoza – and safety. They’ve now accumulated 11 points from a possible 18 over their last six league matches and a similar return from their remaining 9 matches could yet see them escape what seemed like certain relation just a few weeks ago. Valladolid stay second from bottom on 24 points. Just above them on 25 points come Tenerife, who secured a 1-1 draw away to Malaga in a scrappy encounter that very much reflected their positions near the foot of the table. Tenerife remain in the last relegation spot, four points adrift of Zaragoza while Malaga – six points clear of the relegation zone – are still not yet out of trouble.

Finally, Espanyol drew 0-0at home to Sporting while Osasuna narrowly defeated Almeria 1-0 in Pamplona.