La Liga: Villarreal frustrate Atletico's hopes of claiming La Liga top spot

Atletico Madrid are third in the standings with 16 points, while Villarreal have 9 points and are 14th.

Image Courtesy: Twitter/@atletienglish

Struggling Villarreal derailed Atletico Madrid`s hopes of taking the top spot in the La Liga with a 1-1 draw at home on Saturday and were unfortunate not to win the game after squandering a number of chances in the second half.

Atletico Madrid fullback Filipe Luis broke the deadlock early on in the second half by nodding a looping ball into the net after it had clanged against the crossbar off the head of Villarreal defender Ramiro Funes Mori.

Villareal footballer Mario Gaspar grabbed a scrappy equaliser for the home side in the 64th minute, finishing with the outside of his foot after the ball had bounced into his path off team mate Alfonso Pedraza.

Villarreal, without a home win in the league all season and with coach Javi Calleja under pressure, went all out for a winner and came close to getting one on three occasions but were denied by some impressive saves from Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak.

Atletico are provisionally third in the standings with 16 points, while Villarreal have nine points and are 14th.