Rayo Vallecano demolish Atletico Madrid in 3-0 win as Betis close the gap

Rayo Vallecano secured a convincing 3-0 win against Atletico Madrid during Sunday's La Liga action, widening the gap to 15 points behind table toppers Real Madrid for Diego Simeone's team.

Following the significant loss at Butarque stadium, home of Leganes where Rayo played due to issues with their Vallecas pitch, Atletico slipped to fourth place.

Fifth-placed Real Betis reduced their deficit to Atletico to just four points courtesy of a 2-1 victory away to Mallorca.

Goals from Fran Perez, Oscar Valentin, and Nobel Mendy gave Rayo a well-earned success over Atletico, who had previously routed Spanish title holders Barcelona 4-0 in Thursday's Copa del Rey encounter.

As the Spanish Cup represents their strongest shot at trophies this campaign, Atletico appear to have lost some sharpness in league fixtures, evident in this setback against their Madrid neighbours.

The Rojiblancos are winless in their past three La Liga outings.

"The league feels out of reach now, dropping points in matches like this and performing as we did today is unacceptable," fumed Atletico custodian Jan Oblak in his DAZN interview.

"It will be incredibly difficult to compete this way, you cannot pick and choose fixtures, each one demands maximum effort...

"They outperformed us today, well done to them, we were defeated and it was justified."

Simeone, having made several changes to the lineup that overcame Barca ahead of the upcoming Champions League qualifier versus Club Brugge on Wednesday, partially disagreed with Oblak's assessment.

"I do not fully agree, the squad delivered all they had, they were superior, yet there is no cause to fault the effort, commitment, or desire to succeed," Simeone remarked.

"It was not our finest performance, credit to the opposition, and now we focus on midweek."

Under Inigo Perez, Rayo broke the deadlock in the 40th minute via Perez converting Andrei Ratiu's delivery, with Valentin then making it 2-0 after Clement Lenglet lost possession.

Mendy sealed the third goal in the 76th minute amid further defensive lapses from Atletico, capping a dismal day for Simeone's charges.

Rayo, amid recent player and staff grievances over club management, the condition of Vallecas, and training facilities, rose to 17th in the standings.

"This squad is resilient and copes effectively with challenges," noted Rayo manager Perez.

"The game was demanding not just due to the foe but also our internal club and on-pitch issues."

Betis on the rise

Betis built on their recent La Liga success against Atletico with a third consecutive elite division victory, enhancing their prospects for Champions League spots.

Manuel Pellegrini's charges exploited Atletico's stumble by defeating Mallorca on their patch, powered by strikes from Ez Abde and Cedric Bakambu before the break.

Vedat Muriqi halved the deficit for the home side post-interval with his 16th top-flight goal this term, trailing only Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe in the goal tallies, though it proved insufficient.

Even with the Kosovo forward's scoring prowess, Mallorca languish in 18th, one point adrift of Rayo.

Valencia triumphed 2-0 in their local derby versus Levante, climbing to 14th and establishing a two-point buffer from relegation danger.

Monday brings champions Barcelona to Girona, seeking to reclaim the summit after Real Madrid overtook them Saturday via a 4-1 triumph over Real Sociedad.