Football
ESPN staff 8y

Atletico Madrid and Villarreal win to reach round of 16 of Copa del Rey

Atletico Madrid defeated third-tier sideĀ Reus 1-0 on Thursday, comfortably advancing to the round of 16 of the Copa del Rey 3-1 on aggregate.

Manager Diego Simeone rested several regular starters ahead of Sunday's match at Malaga in La Liga, where the club are level on 35 points at the top of the standings with Barcelona.

Fernando Torres and Jorge "Koke" Resurreccion were among the starting XI at the Vicente Calderon Stadium on Thursday, though Torres again failed in his attempt to score his 100th goal with Atletico.

Ghanaian midfielder Thomas Partey scored the winner in the 53rd minute, firing home a low shot from outside the area after a cross was partially cleared by the defence.

The victory was Atletico's ninth in a row in all competitions and kept the club unbeaten in 15 matches.

Also in the Copa del Rey on Thursday, Villarreal defeated Segunda Division club Huesca 2-0 to overturn a first-leg deficit and advance 4-3 on aggregate.

Manuel Trigueros's 28th-minute opener would have been enough to put Villarreal through on away goals, and Roberto Soldado locked up the victory with a second goal on 78 minutes.

Youssef El Arabi's second-half goal lift Granada to a 1-0 victory over Leganes, the result just enough to put the Primera Division side through on away goals, 2-2 on aggregate.

Celta Vigo defeated visiting Almeria 1-0 thanks to a 41st-minute goal by Danish midfielder Daniel Wass, advancing 4-1 on aggregate.

A draw will determine the matchups in the round of 16. The other teams that have already advanced are Barcelona, Deportivo La Coruna, Real Betis, Espanyol, Sevilla, Eibar, Rayo Vallecano, Athletic Bilbao, Las Palmas, Cadiz, Gary Neville's Valencia and second-division club Mirandes.

Real Madrid were eliminated from the competition after fielding an illegible player in a 3-1 first leg win over Cadiz.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

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