Spanish League: Villarreal, Real Sociedad in stalemate

Villarreal moved a point closer to sealing their return to the Champions League after a four-year absence as they warmed up for their Europa League semi-final against Liverpool with a 0-0 draw with Real Sociedad on Sunday.

Captain Bruno came closest to opening the scoring for Villarreal when his free-kick rattled the crossbar midway through the first half.

However, Carlos Vela also missed a great opportunity for Real early in the second half when his attempted chip was beaten away by Sergio Asenjo.

Villarreal continue to lead Athletic Bilbao by six points with just three games remaining despite a dramatic fightback by the Basques to seal a point in a 2-2 draw at bottom-placed Levante.

Victor Casadesus’s early opener and Borja Etxeita’s own goal had Levante on course for a huge win in their battle to beat the drop.

However, Athletic struck twice in the final two minutes through Markel Susaeta and Mikel San Jose to leave Levante still four points off safety. Athletic, Sevilla and Celta Vigo are all at least heading for Europa League next season.