La Liga Table 2017 Week 31: Updated Standings Following Friday's Results

Villarreal defeated Athletic Bilbao 3-1 at the Estadio de la Ceramica in La Liga, as the hosts consolidated fifth place on Friday.

The home team took the lead midway through the first half, but Athletic Club equalised with an immediate response.

However, the visitors collapsed in the second half, allowing the Yellow Submarine to score twice after hopeless defending, completing their 15th victory of the league campaign.

Here is the confirmed result from Spain's top division:

Home	Score	Away
Villarreal	3-1	Athletic Bilbao

Here are the latest standings:

Pos	Club	P	W	D	L	GD	Points
1	Real Madrid	29	22	5	2	48	71
2	Barcelona	30	21	6	3	62	69
3	Atletico Madrid	30	18	7	5	32	61
4	Sevilla	30	17	7	6	15	58
5	Villarreal	31	15	9	7	21	54
6	Athletic Bilbao	31	15	5	11	4	50
7	Real Sociedad	30	15	4	11	2	49
8	Eibar	30	13	8	9	8	47
9	Espanyol	30	11	10	9	0	43
10	Celta Vigo	29	12	5	12	-4	41
11	Alaves	30	10	10	10	-8	40
12	Valencia	30	10	6	14	-9	36
13	Las Palmas	30	9	8	13	-5	35
14	Real Betis	30	8	7	15	-15	31
15	Malaga	30	7	9	14	-13	30
16	Deportivo La Coruna	30	6	10	14	-15	28
17	Leganes	30	6	9	15	-21	27
18	Sporting Gijon	30	5	7	18	-27	22
19	Granada	30	4	8	18	-36	20
20	Osasuna	30	2	8	20	-39	14

Friday Recap

JOSE JORDAN/Getty Images

Athletic Club fell apart after a quick recovery against Villarreal at El Madrigal, opening the door for a ruthless second-half performance from the hosts.

VCF grabbed the lead after Victor Ruiz scored from close range after 17 minutes, but the advantage evaporated as Bilbao quickly found an answer.

Aymeric Laporte was in the right place at the right time from a corner, and the cultured defender finished with the confidence of a striker as he slotted his shot home just three minutes later.

The Basque side appeared a different team in the second half, and hapless defending saw Villarreal take control.

JOSE JORDAN/Getty Images

Cedric Bakambu was assisted by Roberto Soriano minutes after the restart, and Adrian Lopez made it 3-1 after 58 minutes, but the game was turned on its head by a controversial red card.

Ruiz was given a straight red for a tackle on Inaki Williams, sparking wild protests from supporters and team-mates.

However, TV replays showed the defender had caught the attacker with a dangerous lunge, vindicating the referee's decision.

Bilbao attempted to exploit their numerical advantage in the final 15 minutes, and the hosts dug in as time ebbed away.

Villarreal saw out their task after being reduced to 10 men, but the damage was done immediately after half-time as Athletic Club lost concentration for a 15-minute spell.