Soldado lifts Villarreal past star-studded Real

BARCELONA, Spain — Real Madrid lost 1-0 at Villarreal to fall five points behind the Spanish league’s two frontrunners Sunday, after Atletico Madrid pulled level with leader Barcelona by fighting back to win 2-1 against Athletic Bilbao. Roberto Soldado scored Villarreal’s winner eight minutes into a first half it completely dominated, before the host held off Madrid’s furious response after the break. Cut adrift by the pacesetters, Madrid’s defeat left it just two points above fourth-place Celta Vigo and three ahead of Villarreal in fifth. The stumble will add even more pressure on already questioned coach Rafa Benitez after a difficult month that included a 4-0 loss to Barcelona and disqualification from the Copa del Rey for fielding an ineligible player. Madrid not only saw Atletico pull away, it also failed to take advantage of defending champion Barcelona’s second consecutive draw in the league, when held 2-2 by Deportivo La Coruna Saturday. “We didn’t play well in the first half, and the only positive thing I can take away is my team’s reaction in the second,” Benitez said. While Benitez will face even more criticism back in the capital, the 15th round of matches went perfectly for Diego Simeone. His Atletico again showed it has rediscovered the same knack for pulling out wins from its 2014 championship campaign. Saul Niguez started Atletico’s comeback when he equalized from a corner kick right before halftime to cancel out Aymeric Laporte’s 26th-minute opener for Bilbao. With Bilbao dictating the flow of play and Simeone calling for the home fans to rally his side, Antoine Griezmann unleashed a long shot that streaked into the corner of the net for the 67th-minute winner. The France forward, Atletico’s leading scorer with 12 goals in all competitions, rushed to embrace Simeone on the sidelines to celebrate putting the team on its way to an eighth straight victory overall. Madrid was also aiming to capitalize on Barcelona’s slip, but Villarreal physically bossed the star-studded visitors and created a constant threat during a first half that Madrid was fortunate to finish only one goal down. Jonathan Dos Santos set the tone four minutes in when he rattled the upright with strike, after Cedric Bakambu set him up following an electrifying run through the heart of Madrid’s defense. It was a warning for what soon followed. Bruno Soriano tackled Luka Modric to recover the ball and send it forward to Bakambu, who slid a pass over for Soldado to sweep between the legs of goalie Keylor Navas. Overrun in the first half, Madrid roared out of the halftime break, but failed to finish off its chances. Earlier, Valencia remained winless in its second match since Gary Neville took over as coach after needing an own goal to salvage a 1-1 draw at Eibar. Malaga also got its first away win of the season, a 2-1 victory at Rayo Vallecano thanks to Duje Cop’s winning goal with three minutes remaining. — AFP