Villarreal tightened their grip on fourth place in La Liga when Nigerian forward Ikechukwu Uche's last-gasp strike snatched a 1-0 win at fellow promoted side Elche on Monday.
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A hard-fought and entertaining match at Elche's Martinez Valero Stadium in Alicante looked headed for a goalless draw until Uche clipped the ball home from close range in the 90th minute.
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The victory lifted the team with the distinctive canary-yellow strip to 23 points from 12 matches, three ahead of fifth-placed Athletic Bilbao, who lost 2-0 at second-placed Atletico Madrid on Sunday.
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"We knew how to hang in there and at the end we got that piece of luck we needed," Uche said in an interview with Spanish television broadcaster Cuatro.
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"At the moment, we are in a Champions League qualification place but we have to take things step by step," added the pacy 29-year-old.
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"The team is having a good season so far and we have to continue down the same path.
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"Defensively we were solid and in football I think you have to wait for your chance and finally it came."
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Villarreal spent a year in the second division last season and under coach Marcelino have been impressive on their return to the top flight with some attractive attacking football.
In games to come i strongly believe they would prove their worth so they would surely achieve this soon