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BARCELONA, Spain -- Neymar scored twice to help Barcelona beat Villarreal 2-1 and take advantage of Real Madrids slip as it opened up a five-point lead over its fierce rival at the top of the Spanish league on Saturday. Ryan Zimmerman Jersey . Third-place Madrid fell behind and settled for a 2-2 draw earlier at Osasuna in a match both sides finished with 10 men, and Barcelona didnt let the chance escape. Barcelona, still without the injured Lionel Messi, again turned to Neymar after his hat trick against Celtic in the Champions League on Wednesday to convert a penalty on the half-hour mark and restore the lead in the 68th after Villarreal levelled. Barcelonas eighth win in as many league games at Camp Nou this season provisionally lifted it three points clear of Atletico Madrid before it hosts Valencia on Sunday. "We played well and knew how to pull out of the game," Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino said. Other than Alex Songs shot off the upright from a corner kick six minutes in, the first half was a rather monotonous display of "tiki-taka" passing by Barcelona. But all of Villarreals discipline in defence was undone when right back Mario Perez used his arm to block Jordi Albas pass, letting Neymar step up and stroke in the spot kick. Villarreal didnt muster a shot on goal until defender Mateo Musacchio outmanoeuvred Marc Bartra to thump in a corner kick three minutes after halftime to unexpectedly even the score. The pace picked up with Giovani Dos Santos going close for the visitors before Neymar put Barcelona back in charge when he tapped in Alexis Sanchezs short pass following his control of Cesc Fabregas lobbed throughball. Besides missing Messi as his hamstring heals, Barcelona will be without Neymar for next Sundays game at Getafe after he received his fifth yellow card of the season, meaning he must serve a one-game suspension. Osasunas Oriol Riera headed in goals in the 16th and 39th before Madrids woes deepened when Sergio Ramos received his second yellow card in the 44th. With Cristiano Ronaldo unable to extend his eight-game scoring run for club and country, midfielder Isco Alarcon pulled one back before halftime and passed for Pepe to head home the 80th-minute equalizer seconds after Osasunas Francisco Silva also earned his second booking. "The team demonstrated it has a good attitude, but a draw is like a loss for us," Madrid defender Marcelo said. "We knew that the result wasnt good enough but we reacted too late." Madrids five-game winning run in the league ended at Reyno de Navarra Stadium, where it has only one victory in its last six visits. Osasuna, which sits just two points above the relegation zone, has held both Barcelona and Madrid to draws there this season. After Ronaldo missed two chances, Osasuna struck first when right back Marc Bertran dribbled by his marker and swung a cross to the far post where Riera was left unmarked to redirect the ball into the net. Madrid momentarily lost both its verve in attack and composure in defence, and both centre backs Pepe and Sergio Ramos got yellow cards. Riera was left free to finish off the rebound of Damia Abellas header from a corner kick that goalkeeper Diego Lopez sprung to palm off his line. And Ramos soon saw his second yellow card on a questionable decision when Osasunas Roberto Torres fell after colliding with his arm. "Our first 20 minutes were very good. Its unbelievable that we were then down 0-2 and playing with 10 men," Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. "Its difficult to explain." Just when Madrid was at its lowest, Ronaldo dribbled into the Osasuna defence and laid off for Isco to place a right-footed strike just inside the upright and pull one back before the break. Osasuna still appeared set for victory after a placid second half until Silva earned himself two yellow cards in a four-minute span. Isco found the hole left in the defence which Pepe exploited to score Madrids second and salvage a point. Elsewhere, Granada moved into the upper half of the standings by prevailing 2-0 at 10-man Rayo Vallecano in an error-plagued match, which included Granadas Youssef El Arabi wasting a golden chance, Rayo letting Fran Ricos harmless cross bounce into its net, and Rayo defender Ignacio Martinez drawing a second yellow for diving in the box. Malaga edged Getafe 1-0 at home to get a much-needed win and take some pressure off first-year coach Bernd Schuster. Striker Roque Santa Cruz went on in the 74th and a minute later headed in the winner. Anthony Rendon Nationals Jersey . - The Abbotsford Heat hope a last-minute goal keeps their season alive for more than one extra game. Gio Gonzalez Jersey . JOHNS, N. WINNIPEG -- Carter Hutton couldnt have asked for a better place to pick up his first NHL win. The 27-year-old Thunder Bay, Ont., native made 38 saves in front of a sold-out MTS Centre crowd that included his parents and several of his closest friends to backstop the Nashville Predators to a 3-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets Sunday night. "They gave me the puck," said the undrafted journeyman who was making just his second NHL start after spending four seasons in the AHL. "But I think the biggest thing we got was the two points." Nashville coach Barry Trotz chose to rest starter Pekka Rinne after the teams Saturday night win in Montreal, giving Hutton the chance to play in the NHL building thats closest to his hometown. "Playing behind Pekka, hes a world-class goalie, so when I do get a chance to play I need to find ways to win hockey games. Thats what they brought me in for," Hutton said, adding that waiting as long as he did for his first NHL victory made it extra special. Patric Hornqvist scored the game-winner for the Predators (5-3-1), while Eric Nystrom and Matt Cullen added goals. Evander Kane had the lone Winnipeg goal. Trotz didnt think his team showed as much energy as it did the night before in Montreal, but gladly took a road win against a division opponent. "We got good goaltending. We feel we can play good team defence most nights and bend but not break," Trotz said. "Hopefully we can develop the offensive part of our game." The Predators recorded only seven shots in the second period, but made three of them count as they took control of the game. The win extended Nashvilles point streak to five games. The Jets (4-5-0) failed for the third time this season to beat a team that arrived in Winnipeg in the wee hours after playing the night before. Head coach Claude Noel didnt think his teams 39 shots provided nearly enough difficulty for Nashvilles inexperienced netminder. "I think thee shots would be an illusion. Stephen Strasburg Jersey. We needed to get secondary shots," Noel said. "I didnt think we created a whole lot." Nystrom opened the scoring 20 seconds into the second period with a shorthanded effort. The left-winger blocked a Dustin Byfuglien point shot, picked up the puck in the neutral zone and went the length of the ice before beating Jets goalie Ondrej Pavelec with a wrist shot for his second goal of the season. "A shorthanded goal sucks the life out of your team a bit," said Kane, who thought the Jets were playing a solid game until that point. Hornqvists third of the year made it 2-0 when he intercepted a Pavelec clearing attempt in the corner, sent the puck toward the crease, and banked it into the empty net off the skate of Jets defenceman Zach Bogosian. Cullen added to the lead with a high shot from the left faceoff circle at 14:57. "Were playing pretty well right now," Cullen said. "Were getting some good goaltending and playing some good hockey. Were wearing teams down and have four lines that can skate." Pavelec stopped 23 of the 26 shots he faced. The Jets ruined Huttons shutout bid at 9:13 of the third period when Kane jammed in a loose puck for his fifth goal of the season. Cullen had the best chance in a scoreless first period when he came out of the penalty box and scooped the puck up for a breakaway, only to be stopped by Pavelec. The shots were 15-12 Jets after one period. The Jets wrap up their season-long six-game homestand on Tuesday against Washington. The Predators visit Minnesota on Tuesday before heading home for a rematch against Winnipeg on Thursday. Notes: Rookie defenceman Seth Jones logged 26 minutes and 23 seconds of ice time for the Predators. a Forward Devin Setoguchi was back in the Winnipeg lineup after being a healthy scratch against St. Louis on Friday. a The game marked the first meeting between the franchises as Central Division rivals. cheap nfl jerseys cheap jerseys ' ' ' |
