Villa strike fuels Valencia belief

Goalkeeping error
The winner came a minute before half-time after a goalkeeping mistake from Victor Valdés. His pass – intended for Carles Puyol – fell straight to the feet of Villa, who returned the ball with interest from fully 30 metres. Missing their suspended playmaker Ronaldinho, Deco and Lionel Messi, Barcelona failed to score for the first time since the opening day of the season. Their best chance came midway through the second half, when Henrik Larsson brought a fine save from Santiago Cañizares after being sent through one-on-one. Barça have 52 points, Valencia 46 and Real Madrid CF 45.

Villarreal stumble
Villarreal CF's recent slide continued with a 1-0 defeat at RC Celta de Vigo. Fernando Baiano scored from the penalty spot to leave Manuel Pellegrini's side with one win from their last seven league games. Villarreal paid for their lack of attacking potency, having entered the game without Juan Román Riquelme, Juan Pablo Sorín and Guillermo Franco. They slip to eighth, a point behind RC Deportivo La Coruña, who needed a late Rubén Castro goal to defeat Real Betis Balompié.

Kežman winner
Club Atlético de Madrid won their fourth game in succession, although they needed a late Mateja Kežman strike to see off Real Sociedad de Fútbol 1-0. Montjuïc hosted an even affair between RCD Espanyol and Real Racing Club Santander, who eventually prevailed 2-0 with late goals from Damià Abella and Javier Casquero. Deportivo Alavés climbed out of the relegation zone for the first time since September with a 3-2 win against Málaga CF, who replace them in the bottom three. Fellow strugglers RCD Mallorca were held to a 1-1 draw by Getafe CF.