Albacete win to boost survival hopes

Albacete B. claimed a 0-1 win over R. Valladolid CF on matchday 31 of the Liga Adelante, a goal from Portu in the opening minute proving enough to see Luis César Sampedro's men move to 35 points and put greater distance between themselves and relegation; los pucelanos, meanwhile, remain provisionally in third place.

Albacete could not have got off to a better start to the match, taking the lead within a matter of seconds. Samu Delgado got hold of the ball on the left wing, slipped his defender with a change of direction inside the area and, although he watched his shot hit both posts, Portu was on hand to latch on to the loose ball and make it 0-1. Los manchegos were comfortable throughout the first half, but Valladolid could have equalised through Marc Valiente’s header, which was stopped by Fran Dorronsoro.

After the break, Albacete stood firm and could even have extended their lead through a counter-attack that saw Keko unable to find the target with a powerful drive. However, the sending-off of Javier Paredes with ten minutes remaining was a setback for the visitors, who had to resist their opponents' attacks until the final whistle. Óscar González was close to levelling with a long-range volley, but Dorronsoro displayed great reflexes to ensure victory for Albacete.