In Villarreal, the defeat to Barcelona did not mark the end of the story — it became the spark.
A spark that awakened the Yellow Submarine and launched a quiet yet decisive revival.
Villarreal approached their match against Alavés knowing the first half was merely a prelude, and that the real chapter would be written after the break. When the second half began, everything changed.
In the 49th minute, Alberto Moleiro broke the silence, and suddenly the stadium could breathe again. Just minutes later, Gerard Moreno rose from the bench, proving once more that experience always finds its way to goal, doubling the lead in the 55th minute.
The final blow came in the 75th minute, delivered by Georgian forward Giorgi Mikautadze, sealing the outcome and confirming that Villarreal had rediscovered both balance and belief.
Alavés attempted to add a late footnote to the narrative, with Toni Martínez scoring in the 85th minute, but it was merely a line in a story that had already been decided.
With this victory, Villarreal secured their second consecutive win by the same scoreline, following their triumph over Elche, and lifted their tally to 41 points. The Yellow Submarine now sit firmly in the title conversation, eight points behind leaders Barcelona and just four adrift of Real Madrid, with a game in hand that could yet reshape the landscape.
Alavés, meanwhile, remain mid-table on 19 points, watching the race unfold from a distance.
At the foot of the table, Real Oviedo briefly dared to dream. Moroccan forward Ilyas Chaira gave them the lead in the 64th minute, suggesting a rare third win of the season might be within reach. But football seldom respects hope without patience.
Seven minutes from time, Giovani Lo Celso emerged to restore parity for Real Betis, turning home joy into familiar frustration.
Betis climbed to sixth place with 29 points, while Oviedo stayed rooted to the bottom on 13, adding a seventh draw to their growing struggle.
And the story of this LaLiga round is far from complete.
More chapters await on Sunday, before the curtain finally falls on Monday night with Sevilla facing Celta Vigo.
In Spain, nothing is decided too early —
but some teams always know when it is time to rise again.
