(Reuters) - Alaves continued their excellent home form by recovering to beat struggling Spanish powerhouse Valencia 2-1 on Saturday, climbing into fourth place in La Liga and boosting their chances of qualifying for the Champions League for the first time. The win took Alaves to 31 points from 18 games, one ahead of European champions Real Madrid who host Real Sociedad on Sunday, and saw the Basques reach their highest points total in the first half of a La Liga season. "We played so well in such difficult conditions, on an icy pitch and against a team like Valencia who gave everything. Valencia, who finished fourth last year, are 11th on 22 points after a defeat that will pile more pressure on coach Marcelino, who last month faced calls from fans to be sacked. Then we conceded two goals from set plays, their biggest weapon, both of which were avoidable."

Source: The Star January 05, 2019 17:34 UTC