Barcelona gliding in perfection as Villarreal move further into safety: Liga F Week 17 Round Up

Barcelona warmed up to their midweek clash against Levante with a 3-0 win over Sevilla away at the Ramón Cisneros Palacios on Saturday evening. 

The defending champions displayed another flawless performance against their opponents whom they beat 8-0 in the Copa De La Reina quarter-finals last Wednesday. 

The visitors opened the scoring after 18 minutes through forward Clàudia Pina, off a pass from midfielder Keira Walsh. 

Substitute forward Caroline Graham Hansen needed only three minutes to register her name on the scoresheet with an improvised finish after coming on for young forward Vicky López in the 68th minute. 

Midfielder Aitana Bonmatí engineered another goal for her second assist of the match when she set up forward Mariona Caldentey with a cheeky layoff to make it 3-0 after 73 minutes. 

The hosts did not offer much challenge to their opponents as they had 26% ball possession and the defeat meant they remained on 29 points whilst the visitors moved to 48 points after their win, maintaining their perfect season so far.

Watch Sevilla vs. Barcelona highlights below:

Meanwhile, second-placed Real Madrid maintained their top-three finish hopes with a comfortable 4-1 win over Real Betis away at the Ciudad Deportiva Luis de Sol on Sunday afternoon. 

The visitors broke the deadlock after 58 minutes through forward Caroline Møller, off a cross from fellow forward Signe Bruun before the latter doubled her side’s lead four minutes later with a well taken finish after being set up by midfielder Sandie Toletti.

Forward Athenea del Castillo made it 3-0 in the 66th minute, off a pass from midfielder Maite Oroz after Betis forward Tiffany Cameron had been robbed of the ball by defender Olga carmona. 

The hosts pulled a goal back in the 75th minute through forward Carla Armengol, who combined with substitute forward Júlia Aguado before del Castillo sealed the scoring and restored her side’s three-goal advantage with seven minutes left to play after she linked up with Oroz again. 

The win moved the visitors to 39 points whilst the hosts remained on 13 points and in danger of relegation.

Watch Real Betis vs. Real Madrid highlights below:

Third-placed Levante edged visiting UDCA Tenerife 1-0 at the Ciudad Deportiva de Buñol - Campo 1 on Sunday afternoon. 

The hosts enjoyed the hard fought victory as they warmed up to their rescheduled week 14 match against defending champions Barcelona on Wednesday. 

The hosts took a well deserved lead with two minutes remaining from the half-time break through forward Nataša Andonova who reacted quickly to a rebound. 

The hosts lost goalscorer Andonova through injury in the 89th minute and was replaced by midfielder Daniela Arques. 

The win moved the hosts to 37 points, four points above fourth-placed Madrid CFF whilst the visitors remained on 20 points.

Watch Levante UD vs. UDCA Tenerife highlights below:

The Madrid derby between Atlético Madrid and visiting Madrid CFF ended in a one-all stalemate at the Centro Deportivo Wanda Alcalá de Henares on Sunday afternoon. 

The hosts took the lead after 15 minutes through forward Eva Navarro after she was set up by fellow forward Rasheedat Ajibade before the visitors levelled the scores five minutes later through defender Aldana Cometti who headed home a corner kick from midfielder Karen Araya. 

Forward Ludmila could have given the hosts the lead after beating her marker for dead and raced towards goal only to be denied by the upright with goalkeeper Paula Ulloa well beaten. 

The visitors missed Luany, who was suspended for this match after her red card for a second bookable offence, whilst there were no details as to the absence of Racheal Kundananji. The hosts will also be worried about their top goalscorer Sheila Guijarro who has now gone for her longest spell without scoring in the red and white stripes. 

The draw moved the hosts to 31 points whilst the visitors moved to 33 points.

Watch Atlético Madrid vs. Madrid CFF highlights below:

Athletic Club returned to winning ways, beating Sporting Huelva 2-1 away at the Ciudad Deportiva Decáno del Fútbol Español on Sunday evening. 

The visitors broke the deadlock 15 minutes into the match through forward Patricia Zugasti. 

The hosts found a leveller two minutes before the half-time break through defender Raiderlin Carrasco, off a pass from defender Sandra Castelló. 

The visitors snatched the lead on the stroke of half-time through forward Nahikari García who headed home a cross from defender Nerea Nevado. 

The visitors moved to 23 points and into the top half of the table whilst the hosts remained rooted at the base on four points.

Watch Sporting Huelva vs. Athletic Bilbao highlights below:

Granada CF continued with their fight for survival, holding Real Sociedad to a one-all draw away at the Instalaciones de Zubieta on Sunday afternoon. 

The visitors struck first with 19 minutes left to play through substitute forward Carlota Suárez 12 minutes after replacing fellow forward Andrea Gómez. 

The hosts levelled the scores through their own substitute forward Synne Jensen, who converted a pinpoint long pass from defender Manuela Vanegas after 77 minutes, taking her season goal tally to 11 in the league. 

The draw moved Real Sociedad to 26 points whilst the visitors moved to 11 points, two points off safety zone.

Watch Real Sociedad vs. Granada highlights below:

Villarreal made it three wins in a row with a hard fought 1-0 win over Valencia away at the Ciudad Deportiva de Paterna on Saturday afternoon. 

The visitors struck after 34 minutes through forward Kayla McKenna with a header from a cross by defender Nerea Pérez to send the travelling party into a frenzy. 

The win moved the visitors to 18 points, three above their hosts who remained on 15 points, exposing them to relegation threat.

Watch Valencia vs. Villarreal highlights below:

Levante Las Planas scored a late equaliser to deny visiting SD Eibar maximum points after their one-all draw at the Camp Municipal Les Planes on Saturday afternoon. 

The visitors rallied into a ninth minute lead through forward Ane Campos who hit a half volley on the turn, off a well weighted pass from midfielder Arene Altonaga. 

The hosts found the leveller in the 87th minute through a freekick from forward Jessica Martínez. 

It was a drop in points rather than a point gained for the visitors who are now on 14 points and still in danger of relegation with the hosts moving to 19 points with their third draw on the trot.

Watch Levante Las Planas vs. SD Eibar highlights below:

Results (Saturday): Levante Las Planas 1-1 SD Eibar; Valencia 0-1 Villarreal; Sevilla 0-3 Barcelona

Results (Sunday): Levante 1-0 UDCA Tenerife; Real Sociedad 1-1 Granada CF; Real Betis 1-4 Real Madrid; Atlético Madrid 1-1 Madrid CFF; Sporting Huelva 1-2 Athletic Club