La Liga: Sociedad score late win over champions Atletico

A late header by Imanol Agirretxe gave Real Sociedad, who are without a coach, a 2-1 victory over 10-man Atletico Madrid in La Liga on Sunday.

Elsewhere, high-flying Valencia were held to a 0-0 home draw by a defiant Athletic Bilbao.

Mario Mandzukic slotted the ball home after 10 minutes for Atletico but Sociedad quickly drew level through Carlos Vela with a 25-metre drive into the corner. The champions were looking for their fourth straight La Liga win but they again showed defensive frailties that were not apparent last season.

Diego Godin was lucky not to concede a penalty when he upended Vela.

His central defensive partner Miranda then hit a poor back-pass that was intercepted by Agirretxe before Godin did well to clear his shot on the line.

Atletico full back Guilherme Siqueira was given a second yellow card as Sociedad pressed forward although Mandzukic wasted a golden chance as he shot wide from the middle of the penalty area.

Sociedad's dominance paid off when Agirretxe nodded in a Joseba Zaldua cross with 10 minutes to go.

It was a confidence-boosting win for Sociedad, yet to appoint a full-time replacement for Jagoba Arrasate who was sacked last week, as they moved out of the relegation zone on goal difference.

"It was a difficult situation for us and we knew this was an important game," Vela told reporters. "We needed a win and this will help us move forward now."

Valencia are third with 24 points from 11 games and Atletico are a point behind, level with Sevilla who drew 1-1 with Levante.

A late Victor Casadesus strike earned lowly Levante a share of the spoils after Vitolo had given Sevilla a 31st-minute lead.

Real Madrid lead the way with 27 points after a 5-1 win over Rayo Vallecano on Saturday. Barcelona are second, two points adrift, after coming from behind to beat Almeria 2-1.

While Valencia have reeled off a string of good results, forwards Paco Alcacer and Rodrigo Moreno have failed to find the back of the net in more than a month and on Sunday their team mates were unable to come to the rescue.

The best chance for Valencia fell to Pablo Piatti in the first half when his shot was palmed away by Gorka Iraizoz.

Bilbao's Xabier Etxeita was denied late on by a smart save from Diego Alves at the other end.

Image: Real Sociedad players celebrate

Photograph: David Ramos/Getty Images