Atletico Madrid lose ground in title race

After their 1-0 Champions League reverse at Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, Atletico coach Diego Simeone deployed a defensive lineup for the clash at the Sanchez Pizjuan.

Antoine Griezmann initially played as a lone forward in front of a five-man midfield and the champions struggled to impose themselves against the fired-up Europa League holders.

In a match littered with yellow cards, Sevilla had the best chance of the first half when midfielder Vicente Iborra clipped a first-time shot against a post in the 27th minute.

Atletico, beaten 2-0 at Celta Vigo two weeks ago, looked more dangerous when Fernando Torres came on for Arda Turan with half an hour left.

The Spain forward almost had an immediate impact when he charged down the left and crossed for Griezmann but the Frenchman was unable to hit the target.

Griezmann played Torres into space in the 69th minute and his weak shot was easily dealt with by Sevilla goalkeeper Sergio Rico.

Torres had another chance when he created space for himself on the left of the penalty area but sent his angled shot past the far post.

Atletico stayed third on 54 points, five behind second-placed Barcelona, who won a scrappy game at struggling Granada 3-1 on Saturday. Barca are a point adrift of leaders Real Madrid, who host sixth-placed Villarreal later on Sunday.

Valencia strengthened their grip on fourth and closed to within a point of Atletico when a quickfire Pablo Piatti double secured a 2-0 home win over Real Sociedad earlier on Sunday that kept them on course for a lucrative Champions League berth for next season.

Valencia missed out on a place in Europe last term but their sixth win seven games means they are now seven points clear of Sevilla ahead of their match at Atletico next weekend.

Argentine forward Piatti fired Valencia ahead in the 53rd minute at a sun-drenched Mestalla and made it 2-0 three minutes later after good work down the right from Sofiane Feghouli.

Hopes are high at Valencia that a recent takeover of the club by Singapore billionaire Peter Lim will help them sort out their finances and return to being genuinely competitive in Spain and Europe.

Sociedad, coached by former Manchester United manager David Moyes, are 12th on 27 points, five above the relegation places.

Athletic Bilbao climbed to 10th when they won 1-0 at tiny Eibar in a Basque derby, Carlos Gurpegi heading the only goal in the 36th minute.