Lionel Messi’s goal gave Barcelona all three points against a pesky Villarreal side.
Barcelona ace Lionel Messi’s 55th-minute strike settled a wild back-and-forth 3-2 win over Villarreal at Camp Nou.
The visitors took a surprising lead behind Denis Cheryshev’s 30th-minute redirection. Neymar then swept in a rebound to even the score before a sensational Giovani Dos Santos run in the 51st minute set up Luciano Vietto for a brief Villarreal lead. But Rafinha scored just two minutes later for Barca and Messi then sealed the points with a well-placed right-footed effort into Villarreal keeper Sergio Asenjo’s top corner.
On-loan Liverpool striker Iago Aspas scored a last-minute winner to give Sevilla a thrilling 3-2 victory over Espanyol, who played the entire second half with 10 men after goalkeeper Kiko Casilla was sent off.
Christian Stuani put visitors Espanyol ahead from the penalty spot but the hosts levelled through a stunning strike from Diogo Figueiras and then Vitolo tapped home from close range to put Unai Emery’s side ahead before the break.
Casilla was then handed his marching orders in the 40th minute but Sevilla were unable to capitalise on their man advantage in the second half and were left stunned by Victor Sanchez’s 77th-minute equaliser.
However, Aspas eventually got the reward for his tireless performance by scoring the decisive goal in what was his first league start for the club.
Sevilla move one point clear of fellow Champions League chasers Valencia and into fourth in the Primera Division table, while Espanyol remain in ninth.
Iago Aspas nabbed a last-gasp winner for Sevilla on Sunday.
A brace from striker Aritz Aduriz saw Athletic Bilbao record a first league victory in over two months at the expense of bottom club Levante.
The Copa del Rey quarterfinalists were without a La Liga win since taking all three points at Getafe on Nov. 29, but Aduriz’s double in a 2-0 success moves Ernesto Valverde’s side away from the relegation zone ahead of next weekend’s clash with Barcelona.
Levante remain rooted to the foot of the table with their own winless streak in the league now stretching back to Nov. 23, with four defeats from their last five league outings.
A solitary goal by Edgar Mendez saw Almeria pick up a vital 1-0 victory over fellow Primera Division strugglers Getafe.
The winger broke the deadlock in the 44th minute and the goal proved enough to decide an exciting and highly contested encounter which saw both sides finish with 10 men, with Almeria forward Tomer Hemed following Getafe’s Sergio Escudero down the tunnel after being shown a second yellow card.
The win was Almeria’s first home victory of the season and sees them climb out of the relegation zone and move within one point of Getafe, who lie 15th in the table.