Sevilla's title hopes falter following goalless draw with Villarreal
Sevilla missed the opportunity to close the gap on Barcelona and Real Madrid ahead of them in La Liga as they were held to a goalless draw by Villarreal on Sunday.
Samir Nasri failed from the penalty spot in the 49th minute, Wissam Ben Yedder had his goal disallowed for offside in the 59th, and Vicente Iborra's close-range header was brilliantly saved by Villarreal goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo in the 82nd, keeping Jorge Sampaoli's side from being able to gain ground on their rivals.
The result left Sevilla in third place with 43 points, two behind Barcelona and three behind leaders Real Madrid. Barcelona defeated Athletic Bilbao 3-0 on Saturday, while Madrid had their Sunday game at Celta Vigo postponed because of wind damage to Celta's Balaidos' Stadium. Madrid now have two games in hand over Barcelona and Sevilla after this weekend's matches.
It was the second game in a row that Sevilla had failed to win, following a 3-1 loss at Espanyol, a result that halted a five-game winning streak in the league.
Villarreal, meanwhile, who have lost only once in their last eight games, remain in fifth place with 35 points, four behind Atletico Madrid, who beat Leganes 2-0 on Saturday.
Asenjo was crucial in salvaging a point for Villarreal at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium in Seville. In addition to guessing right to make the stop in the penalty kick taken by Nasri, he made two superb saves from close-range headers, one in each half. The most spectacular one came after Iborra's attempt near the end.
Forward Adrian Lopez had a couple of clear chances for Villarreal, also one in each half, but failed to capitalise on them.
And Ben Yedder's goal was disallowed for offside not long after Nasri's missed penalty.
Game Information
Spanish LALIGA Standings
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GD | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real Madrid | 34 | 27 | 6 | 1 | +52 | 87 |
| Girona | 34 | 23 | 5 | 6 | +31 | 74 |
| Barcelona | 34 | 22 | 7 | 5 | +27 | 73 |
| Atlético Madrid | 34 | 21 | 4 | 9 | +24 | 67 |
| Athletic Club | 34 | 17 | 10 | 7 | +22 | 61 |
| Real Sociedad | 34 | 14 | 12 | 8 | +13 | 54 |
| Real Betis | 34 | 13 | 13 | 8 | +4 | 52 |
| Valencia | 34 | 13 | 8 | 13 | -2 | 47 |
| Villarreal | 34 | 12 | 9 | 13 | -2 | 45 |
| Getafe | 34 | 10 | 13 | 11 | -6 | 43 |
| Alavés | 34 | 11 | 8 | 15 | -6 | 41 |
| Sevilla | 34 | 10 | 11 | 13 | -1 | 41 |
| Osasuna | 34 | 11 | 6 | 17 | -14 | 39 |
| Las Palmas | 34 | 10 | 7 | 17 | -13 | 37 |
| Celta Vigo | 34 | 8 | 10 | 16 | -12 | 34 |
| Rayo Vallecano | 34 | 7 | 13 | 14 | -16 | 34 |
| Mallorca | 34 | 6 | 14 | 14 | -13 | 32 |
| Cádiz | 34 | 4 | 14 | 16 | -26 | 26 |
| Granada | 34 | 4 | 9 | 21 | -28 | 21 |
| Almería | 34 | 2 | 11 | 21 | -34 | 17 |
LALIGA News