BARCELONA: Atletico Madrid stumbled again in their La Liga quest after being held by Villarreal to 1-1 at home on Saturday.
The stalemate, which came a week after a shock 1-0 loss at Leganes, left Atletico one point behind Real Madrid before the leader visited last-placed Valladolid.
Gerard Moreno, Villarreal’s top scorer in club history, made it 120 goals for the Yellow Submarine in the 25th minute after the striker converted a penalty he earned when fouled by Reinildo.
Gerard went close twice to adding another goal, but defender Axel Witsel did well to block or disrupt his efforts on either side of halftime.
Atletico coach Diego Simeone rested Antoine Griezmann and midfielder Rodrigo de Paul for the first half. Then he made three changes at halftime, sending on De Paul and winger Samu Lino to kickstart his sluggish attack.
The moves paid off as the hosts pressed Villarreal into their box, and Lino rammed in a 58th-minute equalizer after goalkeeper Luis Junior stopped Ángel Correa’s shot but couldn’t control the ball.
Simeone sent Griezmann on immediately after and the action stayed in Villarreal’s area except for two chances for Villarreal’s Ayoze Pérez, who replaced Gerard.
But Griezmann’s header that bounced just wide in the 86th was the closest Atletico came to snatching a winner.
“We played a good game at a very tough ground against a team with a deep bench that is fighting for the league. We are happy,” Gerard said for a Villarreal that stayed in fifth place.
Atletico are at Salzburg on Wednesday aiming to lock up a spot in the knockout rounds of the Champions League and avoid a playoff.