Villarreal strengthened their position in third place in the Spanish league on Saturday by easily defeating Valencia 2-0. The regional derby finished with Valencia's irate supporters jeering the host team after goals from Gerard Moreno and Santi Comesaña. Before the leaders square off in a classic encounter in the city on Sunday, Villarreal is four points behind leader Real Madrid and two behind second-place Barcelona.
Just before halftime, Moreno gave Villarreal the lead after being fouled by José Manuel Copete in the area and scoring the penalty that followed. In the 57th minute, Santi Comesaña extended the advantage. After defeating Elche 1-0 on the day the Barcelona-based team celebrated its 125th anniversary, Espanyol moved up to fourth position. Two minutes after halftime, left defender Carlos Romero scored the game-winning goal for Espanyol.