La Liga wrap: Valencia held by Levante

2 April 2012 00:14

Valencia's run of poor form continued as they were held to a 1-1 by Levante in La Liga on Sunday, while Real Sociedad recorded a big win.

Unai Emery's Valencia opened the scoring through Jonas, but Arouna Kone levelled in the second half as both sides missed chances to win the encounter at Estadio Mestalla.

Valencia, coming into the clash on the back of three straight losses in all competitions, should have gone ahead through Dani Parejo, but the midfielder skied his shot from close range.

In an otherwise dour first half, Emery's men managed to open the scoring with a rare quality move.

Aduriz started the counter-attack when he played a precise pass to Sofiane Feghouli down the left, and the Algeria international squared for Jonas to tap in on 35 minutes.

Valencia continued to dominate possession without creating clear-cut chances, and they were made to pay in the 54th minute.

A cross-field Jose Barkero pass found Valdo, who nodded across goal to see Kone power a finish past Vicente Guaita.

Both teams had their chances in the final half-hour, but were forced to share the spoils as Valencia remained third.

Elsewhere, Real Sociedad moved eight points clear of the relegation zone with a 4-0 thrashing of Rayo Vallecano.

Imanol Agirretxe put his side ahead after six minutes, finishing off a neat Daniel Estrada cross.

Agirretxe turned provider soon after, nodding a pass across the face of goal for David Zurutuza to head home.

French midfielder Antoine Griezmann added the third on 51 minutes, latching onto Gorka Elustondo's pass before finishing, and former Arsenal forward Carlos Vela struck the fourth.

In the other game, Villarreal played out a 0-0 draw at home to Espanyol to move four points clear of the bottom three.

La Liga preview: Fixture pile-up for Bilbao, Barca

30 March 2012 09:23

Athletic Bilbao face a two day turnaround to prepare themselves for a visit from Barcelona in La Liga on Saturday.

Bilbao travelled to Germany on Thursday to face Schalke in the first-leg of their Europa League quarter-final, and must back up just 48 hours later against reigning champions Barcelona at the Nou Camp.

Coach Marcelo Bielsa will face a dilemma as to how strong a team he puts out against Barca, knowing his side are still a chance to qualify for next season's Europa League despite sitting 11th on the table.

However, he will also be mindful of the return leg against Schalke next Thursday.

Barcelona face a similar problem, with Pep Guardiola's men held to a 0-0 draw against AC Milan in Italy in the Champions League on Tuesday.

They also face a return leg just three days after the home match against Bilbao, but with a deeper squad, the European champions are likely to be able to handle it better.

It is a must-win game for Barcelona, who have cut the gap to league leaders Real Madrid to just six points on the back of seven straight wins.

Jose Mourinho's Madrid are also in action on Saturday, but after a comfortable 3-0 win away at APOEL in the Champions League quarters, the Portuguese has a bit more leeway in his selection against Osasuna.

He will be wary though given that Osasuna upset Barcelona 3-2 back in February.

Elsewhere on Saturday, Malaga continue their charge for third when they host Real Betis.

Manuel Pellegrini's side have risen to fourth on the back of a seven match unbeaten run, and now trail third-placed Valencia on goal difference alone.

Betis on the other hand have taken just three points from their last six matches, and will be desperate to widen the gap between them and the relegation zone.

Racing Santander can close the gap to safety to just three points when they host Granada, who sit narrowly outside the relegation zone in 17th.

Bottom side Real Zaragoza have taken seven points from their last three matches, and need to continue that streak against Sporting Gijon if they are to avoid the drop.

On Sunday, Levante can close in on a Champions League berth when they travel to Valencia, while Atletico Madrid host Getafe.

Real Sociedad will be hoping to snap a three game losing streak when they host Rayo Vallecano and Espanyol are away at Villarreal, before Mallorca make the trip to Sevilla on Monday.