Early elimination stuns Villarreal

By Andy Hall

Villarreal CF became the fifth Primera División side to be knocked out of the Spanish Cup first round by lower-division opposition as Eloi Muñoz scored a dramatic late winner to give third division outfit Girona FC a 2-1 win tonight.

High-profile defeats
With Valencia CF, FC Barcelona, holders Real Zaragoza and RCD Espanyol all losing on Wednesday night, Villarreal began positively at the Montilivi stadium, pressing forward at every opportunity. However, despite their pressure the deadlock was not broken until five minutes into the second half when Villarreal's Uruguayan striker Diego Forlán created the chance for Juan Manuel Peña to open the scoring.

Spot-kick equaliser
Girona were awarded a penalty with 17 minutes left when Forlán handled in the area and Raúl Cabellero made no mistake from the spot, shooting past Javier López Vallejo to level the scores.

Late drama
Villarreal almost regained the lead when Forlán smashed a great effort against the bar with six minutes left but instead it was the third division side who snatched the winner, Eloi Muñoz heading in two minutes before the final whistle.