Colombian Carlos Bacca led Villarreal to a 1-0 win over host Valencia in the 17th round of La Liga, earning the win at the Mestalla for the third consecutive year.
Third-place Valencia thus squandered a chance to climb into second spot after Atletico Madrid’s defeat at the hands of Espanyol earlier on Friday.
Bacca got the better of Villarreal goalkeeper Norberto Neto in a one-on-one situation in the 24th minute for the match’s lone tally on Saturday, reports Efe news.
Valencia’s Simone Zaza was sent off in the 60th minute with a second yellow card, complicating the situation for his team.
Villarreal’s Manu Trigueros was also shown a red card in the 83rd minute after being booked twice, but ultimately Valencia was forced to concede its third defeat in its last four La Liga matches.
The results: Valencia 0 lost to Villarreal 1 (Bacca 24); Deportivo la Coruna 1 (Andone 59) lost to Celta Vigo 3 (Wass 3, Aspas 40, 53).