La Liga: Pépé rescues point for Villarreal with brilliant last gasp equalizer

Nicolas Pépé saved visitors Villarreal from defeat on Friday with a splendid strike in a 1-1 La Liga draw at Alavés.

Appearing destined to lose in a drab affair at the Campo de Fútbol de Mendizorrotza in the Basque Region, one last desperate attack from The Yellow Submarine ended with the Ivorian providing a moment of magic in the eighth minute of time added on.

Santi Comesaña’s hopeful cross into the Alavés penalty area skipped through to the opposite wing, where Pépé collected and got the ball onto his favored left foot to curl his shot into the top corner and leave the home supporters stunned.

An own goal from Rafa Marín put Alavés ahead against the run of play towards the end of the first half, and Los Albiazules did an excellent job at defending their lead for almost all of the second half. But despite an uninspired performance from the visitors, they made one last desperate push in an extended period of stoppage time to salvage a point from the fixture.

 

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Villarreal remain in a strong position to qualify for the UEFA Champions League, now battling Atlético Madrid for third place behind title battlers Barcelona and Real Madrid. They move one point clear of Atlético, who will host Getafe on Saturday.

Pépé now has 4 goals and 5 assists in 37 appearances across all competitions.