Villarreal’s 3-1 victory over Deportivo Alaves has propelled them to third place in La Liga, marking their best first half of a season in club history. With goals from Alberto Moleiro, Gerard Moreno, and Georges Mikautadze, Villarreal now stands just eight points behind FC Barcelona and four points behind second-placed Real Madrid, with a game in hand. Meanwhile, Alaves finds themselves just above the relegation zone at the halfway mark of the season.
Oviedo and Real Betis ended in a 1-1 draw, with Giovani Lo Celso’s late touch on Antony’s cross cancelling out Ilyas Chaira’s goal for Oviedo. Valencia remains in the bottom three after a 1-1 draw with Elche, where Grady Diangana scored for Elche before committing a handball that led to Pepelu equalizing for Valencia from the penalty spot.
Girona secured a 1-0 victory over Osasuna with Vladislav Vanat’s clever backheel goal just before halftime, lifting them four points clear of the relegation zone. Real Sociedad clinched a 2-1 win against Getafe, courtesy of Jon Aramburu’s late header following goals from Brais Mendez and Juanmi.
