Villarreal Victory Closes La Liga Gap on Atletico Madrid

Villarreal strengthened their push at the top end of La Liga with an emphatic 4–1 victory over Espanyol on Monday night, drawing level on points with third-placed Atletico Madrid.

Goals from Georges Mikautadze, Nicolas Pépé and Alberto Moleiro, combined with an own goal from José Salinas, lifted the Yellow Submarine to 45 points. However, a late consolation strike from Espanyol defender Leandro Cabrera prevented Villarreal from overtaking Atletico, who remain third due to a marginally superior goal difference.

Atletico Madrid’s defeat to Real Betis on Sunday had opened the door for Villarreal to close the gap, and Marcelino’s side made full use of the opportunity. Diego Simeone’s team still hold third place by a single goal, although Villarreal retain a game in hand.

For Espanyol, the defeat marked a fourth consecutive loss in the league. The Catalan side now sit four points behind fifth-placed Real Betis but remain in contention for a UEFA Conference League qualification spot, holding a slender one-point advantage over Celta Vigo.

Villarreal took the lead in the 35th minute through Georgian forward Mikautadze, who reacted sharply to Tajon Buchanan’s knock-down to fire home an acrobatic, swivelling volley from close range.

The hosts doubled their advantage just before half-time when Salinas inadvertently turned Moleiro’s driven square pass into his own net, leaving Espanyol with a mountain to climb.

Pépé extended Villarreal’s lead less than five minutes after the restart, skilfully evading a challenge on the edge of the area before drilling a low left-footed effort across the goalkeeper and into the corner.

Moleiro completed the scoring for Villarreal in the 55th minute, curling home a composed finish after finding space inside the penalty area at the end of a swift counter-attack.

Espanyol managed a late response in the 88th minute when Cabrera glanced a header into the net from a corner, but it proved little more than consolation as Manolo González’s side continue to struggle for form.