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Villarreal gatecrashes Barcelona party

MADRID: Barcelona must wait another week to clinch the Spanish league title after Joseba Llorente scored a dramatic 90th-minute equaliser as Villarreal gatecrashed the party with a 3-3 draw at Camp Nou on Sunday.

Barcelona was on course to win its 19th title in front of its fans when it held a 3-1 lead, but Villarreal scored twice in the final 12 minutes to put the celebrations on hold.

Barcelona needs just one point from the final three matches, with the next league match at Real Mallorca, to win its first league title since 2006.

A 28th goal of the season from Samuel Eto’o and a Dani Alves free-kick built on Seydou Keita’s opener as Barcelona held a 3-1 advantage at half-time.

However, Eric Abidal was sent off for Barcelona late on after conceding a penalty which Matias Fernandez converted and the host was hit with the sucker punch in stoppage time as Llorente scored his second goal.

Barcelona has amassed 86 points and has three games to try to overtake Real’s all-time points record of 92 set back in 1997, although it was 42 games then instead of the current 38.

For Villarreal the point leaves it three points adrift of fourth-placed Valencia in the Champions League race.

Atletico pips Espanyol

Atletico Madrid moved a point behind Valencia with a 3-2 comeback win over Espanyol with Villarreal old boy Diego Forlan scoring a sensational 90th-minute winner.

Atletico had been reduced to 10 men with the dismissal of Luis Perea and trailed 2-0, but came storming back with Sergio Aguero scoring and Forlan grabbing a brace to take his season’s tally to 27 — just one behind Eto’o.

Espanyol saw its run of four straight wins come to an end and it is not safe yet lying four points above the drop zone.

Inter, Milan held

In the Italian league Inter Milan can retain the title with a home win over Siena next weekend after second-placed AC Milan drew 1-1 with battling Juventus on Sunday.

Jose Mourinho’s Inter was also held, 2-2 at Chievo, but kept its seven-point lead with three games remaining.

The results: La Liga: Getafe 3 (Esteban Granero 27-pen, 50, Ikechukwu Uche 54) bt Osasuna 0; Recreativo Huelva 1 (Adrian Colunga 44) lost to Deportivo La Coruna 2 (Joan Verdu 18, Pablo Alvarez 50).

Valladolid 0 drew with Numancia 0; Malaga 1 (Albert Luque 87-pen) bt Racing Santander 0; Almeria 3 (Miguel Angel Nieto 27, Kalu Uche 55, Pablo Piatti 90) bt Sporting Gijon 1 (Carmelo Gonzalez 16); Barcelona 3 (Seydou Keita 12, Samuel Eto’o 36, Daniel Alves 45) drew with Villarreal 3 (Joseba Llorente 22, 90, Matias Fernandez 78-pen); Atletico Madrid 3 (Diego Forlan 53, 90, Sergio Aguero 60) bt Espanyol 2 (Nene 38-pen, Daniel Jarque 40).

Serie A: AC Milan 1 (Clarence Seedorf 57) drew with Juventus 1 (Vincenzo Iaquinta 60); Atalanta 1 (Bergamo 1) drew with Genoa 1 (Domenico Criscito 90); Cagliari 2 (Alessandro Matri 34, Robert Acquafresca 58) drew with AS Roma 2 (Francesco Totti 64, Simone Perrotta 69).

Catania 0 lost to Fiorentina 2 (Stevan Jovetic 11, Luciano Zauri 90+3); Chievo Verona 2 (Michele Marcolini 27, Luciano 73) drew with Inter Milan 2 (Hernan Crespo 3, Mario Balotelli 65); Lecce 1 (Andrea Zanchetta 44-pen) drew with Napoli 1 (Joao Batista Inacio Pia 33). Siena 1 (Emanuele Calaio 60) bt Palermo 0; Torino 1 (Alessandro Rosina 37-pen) drew with Bologna 1 (Marco Di Vaio 86-pen). — Agencies

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