A shocking night for the La Liga contingent in the UEFA Europa League as not one out of the four Spanish sides managed a win. Atletico Madrid can count themselves seriously unlucky as they put in another eye-catching performance against Frank Rijkaards Galatasaray, and looked to be on course for a well-earned win through in-form Jose Antonio Reyes' stunning free-kick. But just after the impressive De Gea had been taken off with a muscle strain, the defence went missing for a split second and it was enough for Keita to sneak in unmarked at the backpost to score a precious away goal. The result will be a blow, but playing like this, I wouldn´t bet against Atlético pulling it off in Turkey. They'll need a sharp Diego Forlán, a fired-up Sergio Agüero and for their back four to concentrate for the whole 90 minutes (possible?), but with players like Reyes and Simao hitting top form further up the field, they can travel to Istanbul in confident mood.
Villarreal took an early lead but had to come from behind to draw with Wolfsburg after prolific Brazilian striker Grafite had netted a brace. Athletic Bilbao also came from behind, as Gorka Iraizoz gifted Anderlecht their opener, with the Basque indebted to on-loan defender San Jose who grabbed the equaliser. Struggling Valencia have it all to do in their tie as their poor recent form continued tonight. A 1-0 defeat against Brugges, a red card for David Silva and another defensive injury to contend with, as Matheiu suffered a sprained ankle, capped off a thoroughly dismal evening for 'Los Che'. Unai Emery will be praying David Villas drought doesn't continue for much longer, because without his goals they are suffering. And how many times does that man hit the post?
UEFA Europa League (Round of 32: First Leg)
Atletico Madrid 1 - 1 Galatasaray
Villarreal 2 - 2 Wolfsburg
Brugge 1 - 0 Valencia
Athletic Bilbao 1 - 1 Anderlecht
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