

Atletico Madrid secured all three points and moved up to fourth position in La Liga, two points ahead of Athletic Bilbao, thanks to a last-minute goal from substitute Saúl Ñíguez. Villarreal had won its previous four games and was nine games undefeated. With three minutes left, Ñíguez scored the game-winning goal by skillfully side-footing a low effort past the goalie from a distance of 17 yards. Three minutes before, the center midfielder had replaced Pablo Barrios, and this was his first league goal of the year.
After eight minutes, Axel Witsel headed in a corner from Rodrigo Riquelme to give the capital club a 1-0 lead. Alexander Sørloth, a striker for Villarreal from Norway, tied the score four minutes into the second half with his 14th goal of the year. Villarreal, who played better in the second half of the encounter after a bad start, was dealt a heavy blow by the late defeat.