Valencia closes in on Barca with their 12th consecutive unbeaten match.

Coach Marcelino's team continued to emerge as a title contender after defeating Espanyol in round 12 of La Liga.

Playing away at Espanyol, Valencia had little difficulty securing the victory. Two goals from Kondogbia in the 67th minute and Santi Mina in the 83rd minute were enough to give "the Bats" a full three points.

This was Valencia's 12th consecutive unbeaten match since the start of the 2017-2018 La Liga season (nine wins and three draws). Along with league leaders Barca, Valencia is one of only two teams yet to lose a game.

Valencia are playing very consistently in La Liga. Photo: Reuters

Thanks to their win away at Espanyol, coach Marcelino's team maintained their lead, trailing Barca by just 4 points. Later, Real Madrid and Atletico were both 6 points behind Valencia (24-30).

Maintaining a four-point deficit is a boost for Valencia. If they beat Barca in their direct confrontation next weekend at home at Mestalla, Marcelino's team will narrow the gap to just one point. That could be a new step forward on their path to winning the championship.

The last time Valencia won La Liga was in the 2003-2004 season. The Mestalla Stadium team is also the fifth most-time champion (six times), behind Real (33), Barca (24), Atletico (10) and Bilbao (8).

According to VNE