Rayo Vallecano wins 1-0 at Las Palmas to leave home side deep in relegation trouble

MADRID (AP) — Las Palmas missed a chance to grab vital points in its relegation fight when it lost 1-0 at home to Rayo Vallecano in the Spanish league on Friday.

Alvaro Garcia smashed the winner in off the underside of the bar 20 minutes into the second half to leave Las Palmas third from bottom with 32 points, three points behind Alaves immediately above.

Leganes is 19th in the 20-team top tier with 31 points. Both Leganes and Alaves have a game in hand.

Valladolid has already been relegated and two more teams will join it.

“Right now, it’s frustrating,” Las Palmas midfielder Alberto Moleiro told broadcaster DAZN. “We always give it our all, and we have to keep going. There are three (games) left and we’re not going to give up.”

The win lifted Rayo into seventh and the Europa League places. It sits a point above Celta Vigo and three points clear of Osasuna and Mallorca, all of whom have a game in hand.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer