Second division day 30

In a weekend without first division football, Sevilla extended their lead at the top of the second with a 3-2 victory over Levante. Michel scored twice as they opened up a four point gap over Tenerife, who could only draw 1-1 at home to Racing Ferrol. Betis's new manager Luis Del Sol fared no better than Fernando Vázquez, losing his first match in charge 1-0 away to Extremadura. Their recent run of bad form means they drop out of the top three for the first time in weeks, dropping down to fifth. Recreativo Huelva surprisingly go third, four points behind Tenerife, after defeating promotion rivals Salamanca 0-1 with a second half goal from Bodipo. The defeat cost Salamanca's manager Juan Señor his job.

Albacete continue their rise up the table with a 2-0 victory over Elche. Two goals in a minute in the second half from Edu García and Mikel helped them move up to fourth, ahead of Betis on goal average. Atlético Madrid stayed four points away from the promotion spots in seventh place after drawing 1-1 at Córdoba. Salva gave them a first half lead with his fourteenth of the season, but an injury time goal from Gallego with Atlético down to ten men cost them two important points in their fight for promotion. Salva is now second in the top scorers' chart, one behind Murcia's Loreto, who got both his team's goals in the second half as they fought back to draw 2-2 with Jaén. With twelve games to go the three promotion spots appear to be between the top seven teams, although Sporting Gijon have an outside chance after an early Ledhiakov goal gave them a 0-1 win at Leganés.

Sporting move two points away from the chasing pack, which includes draw specialists Eibar and Badajoz. Eibar proved once again that they are the most boring team in the league with their eleventh 0-0 draw, this time against Compostela, and Badajoz shared the points for no less than the seventeenth time this season, 1-1 at next to bottom club Universidad Las Palmas. The Canary Island club are virtually doomed for the drop, as are the bottom side Lleida, who lost at home to relegation rivals Getafe by 1-2, despite taking the lead in the tenth minute through ex Deportivo midfielder Renaldo. Maikel got two in three minutes after the break to give the visitors a hope of survival. (25.03.01)