Sevilla stop the rot to stay top as Atletico give chase
Seville kept on course for their first Spanish league title in 61 years after a battling goalless draw at Villarreal to stretch their advantage to three points.
Villarreal are not the side which reached the Champions League semi finals last year but with Diego Forlan prompting them forward they gave Seville a tough examination and the visitors were pleased to escape with a point after successive losses, at Zaragoza and at home to Mallorca last weekend.
Those results prompted Seville coach Juande Ramos to forecast that "infernal battles lie ahead."
And a blood-and-thunder match of eleven yellow cards - five for the hosts and six for the visitors - proved him right in a match of few clear cut chances which left Seville on 38 points from 19 games, three ahead of Barcelona -- who have played two matches fewer, Real Madrid, and Atletico Madrid.
Atletico earlier beat Osasuna with a Ze Castro goal after Fernando Torres missed a penalty and Osasuna had four men sent off in the closing stages.
Seville's league top scorer Freddy Kanoute had a quiet night, save for setting up Renato on the stroke of half-time but home keeper Sebastian Viera was alert to the danger.
As the leaders stemmed their recent loss of form Atletico Madrid were celebrating after they boosted their hopes of bagging a Champions League berth by seeing off indisciplined Osasuna who had four players sent off.
The three points moved the "rojiblanco" into the top three but they needed a goal seven minutes from time by Portuguese star Ze Castro to settle the affair with a thumping finish after Torres' missed spotkick five minutes beforehand.
Carlos Cuellar had hauled the Spain international forward down in the box and paid with a red card.
Referee Lizondo Cortes had a field day as he had banished Atletico's Mexican coach Javier Aguirre to the stands just before the interval when the latter became over-heated in the technical area against his former club.
After Hector Font had gone close for the visitors, denied by keeper Ivan Cuellar, standing in for injured Argentine Leo Franco, Atletico began to find their feet as Sergio Aguero twice brought good saves out of Osasuna shot-stopper Ricardo.
Cuellar's exit and Castro's goal brought the red mist down for Osasuna and former Real Madrid striker Roberto Soldado was next to go for an elbow on Ze Castro on 86 minutes before Cortes dismissed keeper Ricardo for timewasting after dishing out an earlier booking in similar circumstances.
In injury time Raul Garcia completed Osasuna's miserable night when he was red-carded for a foul on Georgios Seitaridis.
Atletico joined Real and Barca on 35 points but Real will seek to go joint top with a win Sunday at Real Mallorca, who beat them last season and who are now on a high after the win a week ago in Seville.
Barcelona are home to Gimnastic Tarragona on Sunday, which should be a home banker.
Real have to put a turbulent week behind them having waved goodbye effectively to both Los Angeles-bound David Beckham and also seemingly AC Milan-bound Ronaldo.
They edged out Real Zaragoza at the Bernabeu last Sunday to stay in touch as Seville and Barcelona both lost - Barca to city rivals Espanyol.
Elsewhere, in-form Valencia, fourth after stitching together five consecutive wins, will look to extend their streak at struggling Real Sociedad, second from bottom and facing the drop for the first time in 40 years.