Villarreal join high-profile victims in the Cup

Villarreal became the fifth Primera Liga side to fall at the first hurdle in the King's Cup when they lost 2-1 at third division Girona on Thursday.

Holders Real Zaragoza, league leaders Barcelona, champions Valencia and high-flying Espanyol all fell victim away to lower-ranked opponents in a night of upsets on Wednesday and Villarreal followed suit with another shock defeat.

Villarreal looked as though they had seen off their modest opponents when Juan Manuel Pena put them ahead just after halftime, the Bolivian defender poking in after Diego Forlan had laid the ball back to him following a corner.

But their modest opponents refused to fold and got the break they needed when Caballero converted from the spot after Forlan had conceded a penalty in the 73rd minute.

The third division side then dealt the decisive blow two minutes from the final whistle when Eloy scored after a quick break down the right wing and a shell-shocked Villarreal had no time to respond.

On Wednesday a weakened Barca, missing the influential Ronaldinho and Deco, lost their first domestic game of the season in a shock 1-0 extra-time defeat by third division Gramenet.

Nine-man Zaragoza slipped to a 2-1 defeat at Gimnastic, Espanyol lost 5-3 on penalties to Terrassa and Claudio Ranieri's Valencia were dealt their fourth defeat in a row when they also lost to a second division side by going down 1-0 at Lleida.

Real Madrid, however, made it safely through to the second round on Tuesday, England striker Michael Owen scoring his third goal in as many games to help his side clinch a 2-1 win over third division neighbours Leganes.

The second round ties, which will also be played on a one-off basis, are scheduled for the week beginning November 8.