La Liga Table 2018 Week 30: Standings and Final Scores After Sunday
Atletico Madrid reopened a four-point lead over rivals Real Madrid in second place in La Liga after beating Deportivo La Coruna 1-0 at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium on Sunday.
Earlier, Valencia closed the gap on third-placed Real to one point after winning by a single goal in Leganes. In the process, Los Che also maintained a double-digit lead over Villarreal in fifth and strengthened their chances of qualifying for next season's UEFA Champions League.
The Yellow Submarine couldn't keep pace after losing to bottom side Malaga. Eibar and Real Sociedad mustered a 0-0 draw at the Ipurua Municipal Stadium, while Espanyol and Alaves was also goalless.
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Here are the final scores from Sunday's matches:
- Espanyol 0-0 Alaves
- Leganes 0-1 Valencia
- Eibar 0-0 Real Sociedad
- Malaga 1-0 Villarreal
- Atletico Madrid 1-0 Deportivo La Coruna
Here's what those results mean for the updated standings:
1. Barcelona: 76
2. Atletico Madrid: 67
3. Real Madrid: 63
4. Valencia: 62
5. Villarreal: 47
6. Sevilla: 46
7. Girona: 44
8. Real Betis: 43
9. Celta Vigo: 40
10. Eibar: 40
11. Getafe: 39
12. Athletic Bilbao: 36
13. Espanyol: 36
14. Leganes: 36
15. Real Sociedad: 34
16. Alaves: 32
17. Levante: 28
18. Las Palmas: 21
19. Deportivo La Coruna: 20
20. Malaga: 17
Full standings are available, per BBC Sport.
Kevin Gameiro's successful penalty on 34 minutes was all Atleti needed to send struggling Depor packing without a point. The spot-kick was awarded after buccaneering midfielder Saul Niguez was brought down in the box.
Chances were hard to come by afterwards, especially for an Atletico side missing most of its top attacking talent. Strikers Diego Costa and Fernando Torres both began on the bench but did enter the match as second-half substitutes.
Meanwhile, star forward Antoine Griezmann didn't feature at all.
Fortunately, manager Diego Simeone can still rely on a rock-solid defence. The Argentinian can also now turn his attention to Thursday's tricky UEFA Europa League quarter-final first leg against Sporting Lisbon.
As for Depor, relegation is beginning to loom large. OptaJose summed up how miserable things have been for manager Clarence Seedorf:
Valencia had Rodrigo to thank for closing the gap on the champions, after the striker's goal proved enough to beat Leganes. His sweeping shot 17 minutes after the break was a rare moment of quality in a game otherwise short of goalmouth action.
Even so, Los Che deserved credit for how organised and resilient they were in defensive areas. A back four led by former Arsenal centre-back Gabriel Paulista received excellent cover from powerhouse holding midfielder Geoffrey Kondogbia.
Valencia have mastered the art of the steady win on Marcelino's watch during this campaign, one reason why this team now looks a lock to be playing Champions League football in 2018.
Villarreal's chances of doing the same now appear dashed after Chory Castro's penalty gave Malaga three precious points in their battle to beat the drop. Relegation still seems inevitable for a side 11 points short of safety.
Eibar stayed in the top 10 after denying Sociedad chances. Both teams look comfortable and already in end-of-season mode.
The day's other 0-0 stalemate saw Espanyol find themselves well-contained by struggling Alaves, who left the RCDE Stadium with a point
Espanyol had plenty of quality in attack, in the form of Gerard Moreno and Sergio Garcia, but their best chance fell to midfield man Pablo Piatti, who shot wide with 16 minutes left.
Alaves might have won it had Barcelona loanee Munir El Haddadi gotten more purchase on his header from close range.
Like Sociedad, a point has eased any relegation fears for both sides, with Espanyol now 15 points clear of the bottom three, while Alaves are 11 above the drop zone.
