Malaga, Spain (SportsNetwork.com) - Atletico Madrid moved to the top of the La Liga table on Saturday as Koke's 70th-minute goal handed the club a 1-0 victory over Malaga at La Rosaleda.
The two clubs were level heading into the final quarter of the match, but the home side eventually broke through to collect the win and climb to 49 points on the season.
Adrian nearly netted the telling goal only to see his shot parried away by Malaga goalkeeper Willy Caballero, but Koke was arriving to slam home the rebound from 12 yards out for his third league goal of the campaign.
The win brings Atletico three points clear of Barcelona, which will host Elche on Sunday with the opportunity to move back to the La Liga summit.
Malaga's three-game unbeaten run comes to an end as the club remains on 20 points.
Valencia 2, Levante 0
Valencia, Spain - Valencia scored on both sides of halftime to get a 2-0 win over Levante on Saturday, bringing the club to eighth place in the Spanish top flight.
Pablo Piatti put Valencia in prime position just before halftime by opening the scoring three minutes before the break, and Sofiane Feghouli put the win beyond any lingering doubt with an insurance goal in the 73rd minute.
The win puts Valencia on 23 points for the season, moving the club three points clear of Levante.
Almeria 3, Granada 0
Almeria, Spain - Almeria continued its run of good form on Saturday by getting a comfortable 3-0 win over Granada at the Estadio de los Juegos Mediterraneos.
The home side was two goals to the good inside the opening half-hour as a strike from Sebastian Dubarbier in the 14th minute and a penalty from Verza in the 28th put Almeria in cruise control.
The second half was much of the same as Alexis Vidal Parreu added a third goal 11 minutes from time to seal Almeria's second straight league win and its seventh point from its last three matches. Granada has lost three of its last four in league play.
Valladolid 0, Real Betis 0
Valladolid, Spain - Valladolid and Real Betis shared the spoils at the Jose Zorrilla on Saturday by playing to a 0-0 draw.
The result does neither club any massive favors as they both remain rooted inside the bottom-four.
Real Betis stays in the La Liga cellar on 11 points while Valladolid remains one spot above the relegation zone on 16 points.
