Atlético Madrid strike late to beat Villarreal in La Liga clash | OneFootball

Arsenal v Bristol City de Madrid ground out a narrow win over midtable Villarreal on Monday night, strengthening their hopes of finishing in the top four of La Liga come the end of the campaign.

Scorers: Witsel 9′, Saul 88′; Sorloth 50′

Diego Simeone’s side took the lead inside the opening 10 minutes of the game through an unlikely source, as Belgian veteran Axel Witsel headed home from a corner.

The Rojablanco dominated much of the first half, racking up three further shots on target. However, they couldn’t find the all-important second goal and just five minutes into the second half, they paid the price.

With Villarreal’s first shot on target, Alexander Sorloth bought them level, firing a left-footed effort from the edge of the box into the bottom corner and levelling the scoreline.

Simeone’s side rallied, pushing for the winner and Alvaro Morata was only denied it by the width of the post as the game headed into its final stages. Eventually though, their quality told and Saul restored his side’s lead with just minutes left to play, ensuring all three points for the Rojablanco despite a nervy end eight minutes of stoppage time.