Elche earned a 1-0 win at Sociedad Deportiva Eibar to edge further away from the Spanish La Liga relegation zone on Monday.
Elche striker Jonathas glanced Eduardo Albacar’s lobbed free-kick just enough with his head to send it bouncing past goalkeeper Xabier Irureta in the 50th minute. It was the Brazilian’s team-leading ninth goal of the season.
Elche did little else in attack and needed goalkeeper Przemyslaw Tyton to make several good saves to secure the victory, including a second stop of an Ander Capa strike in the final minutes.
Photo: EPA
The hosts finished with 10 men after Federico Piovaccari was shown a straight red card for swinging his arm into Albacar’s face while they both jumped for a high ball with 12 minutes to play.
“We have worked hard all week for this, it’s a big step for us,” Jonathas said.
Elche stayed in 17th place, one spot above the danger zone, but did open a four-point gap above the three teams currently in the drop.
Photo: EPA
A fourth consecutive defeat left Eibar in 10th place. The promoted club who were the sensation of the first half of the season seems to have hit a wall.
“This is a very bad result for us,” Eibar’s Eneko Boveda said. “It was essential for us to get back to what we had been doing before these past few weeks. We have gone backward.”
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