Villarreal are on the verge of securing their highest ever Primera Liga finish after beating relegation-threatened Recreativo Huelva on Wednesday night.
Nihat Kahveci's 18th goal of the season and a late Guille Franco strike proved enough to seal victory for the visitors in a tight contest.
Manuel Pellegrini's side, who finished third in 2005, began the day four points clear of third-placed Barcelona and with just two rounds of the championship remaining.
And the win over Recre has left them favourites to claim the runners-up spot behind champions Real Madrid.
While Villarreal sought a victory to consolidate second place, Recreativo's need was far greater coming into this match.
The Andalusian side began the day just above the relegation zone and could ill afford another defeat after Saturday's 3-0 loss at Atletico Madrid.
The home side started brightly and Florent Sinama-Pongolle almost gave them the perfect start.
The Frenchman received the ball with his back to goal, turned and unleashed a powerful angled drive, but saw his effort crash into the side netting after seven minutes.
The former Liverpool striker came even closer to breaking the deadlock with 26 minutes on the clock, but was this time denied by the crossbar after beating Diego Godin and rifling a cracking shot past Diego Lopez from the edge of the area.
Sinama-Pongolle was a man inspired and turned provider on the half-hour mark.
The Frenchman this time beat two defenders and charged into the area before passing to the unmarked Marcos Ruben, but the on-loan Villarreal midfielder saw his close-range effort saved by Diego Lopez.
Four minutes later, Gerard Lopez put Sinama-Pongolle through, but the striker miscontrolled the ball and the chance was lost.
It was a rare mistake by the on-form forward and Villarreal were riding their luck at this stage.
Recre continued to press as half-time approached and Marcos was presented with another good chance following Gonzalo Rodriguez's error, but was again denied by Diego Lopez.
Everything changed after the break.
Manuel Zambrano's side were unable to find the form they showed in the first period and suffered a hammer blow when Nihat smashed home a brilliant free-kick after 54 minutes.
The in-form Turkey striker had also scored both his side's goals against Getafe on Sunday and his tally of 18 goals is his highest in Spanish football since arriving at Real Sociedad in 2001.
Recre tried in vain to get back into the game, but Villarreal looked in control after Nihat's strike and chances were at a premium as the second half wore on.
The home side were cheered on by their vociferous home support, but lacked their early intensity and appeared short of ideas as the full-time whistle approached.
And those fans were left disappointed as substitute Guille Franco latched onto Santi Cazorla's pass and fired home a clinical second after 82 minutes.
Recre threw men forward, but there was no way back for the home side.
However, it was not all bad news for Recre as Real Mallorca's 2-1 win against Osasuna meant the Andalusians remain clear of the relegation zone with two games remaining.
Source :Wires
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