Iñaki Williams produced a night to remember for Athletic Bilbao fans on Wednesday, scoring in the fifth minute to seal a vital 1-0 victory over Las Palmas and take the Basque club closer to the Champions League.
Just five La Liga fixtures remain in the campaign, and the victory seals Bilbao’s fourth position, eight points ahead of Villarreal, who were thrashed 3-0 at Celta Vigo on the same evening.
Williams struck the tone in the opening minutes of the game at San Mamés, beating a defender in the area before curling in the ball with the outside of his boot. Las Palmas pulled all effort to ensure that they add points so as not to be included in the relegation zone, but Unai Simón, Spanish international goalkeeper, made two crucial saves in the first half to preserve the advantage.
As the Champions League gets tougher, Athletic Bilbao is still in with a good chance to clinch the Europa League too, with an already planned semi-final against Manchester United on the horizon. Bilbao might be lucky to feature in the European final if they defeat England side Manchester United in front of their home fans, an unusual game.
Elsewhere in the table, Real Betis in sixth position remain hopeful of qualifying for the top five, behind Villarreal by only a single point before they host bottom-side Valladolid on Thursday.
And in the title battle, Barcelona overcame Mallorca 1-0 on Tuesday, taking the top position seven points clear of Real Madrid’s trip to Getafe later in the evening.
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