BARCELONA, Spain - Athletic Bilbao strengthened its hold on fourth place in the Spanish league by winning 2-0 at Real Betis on Sunday after the bottom side had two players dismissed. Bilbaos first victory in four rounds lifted it four points clear of Real Sociedad and kept it in command of Spains last Champions League berth for next season. In contrast, Betis was left 11 points from safety after a dismal performance that at times bordered on self-destruction amid some questionable refereeing decisions. Seconds after Betis Ruben Castro was booked for diving in the area, Bilbao forward Iker Muniain scored from a spot kick in the 34th minute after Damien Perquis tripped Kike Sola from behind on the edge of the area. Another reckless tackle by Perquis earned him a second yellow card in the 41st to completely deflate the crowd at Benito Villamarin Stadium. Betis was left with nine men from the 58th when Lorenzo Reyes handled the ball after he had already been booked for arguing. Bilbao squandered several scoring chances until substitute Guillermo Fernandez headed in the first ball he touched in the 81st. Betis has won one game in the last 18 rounds despite having three different coaches this season. "It was an ugly game," said Bilbao coach Ernesto Valverde. "My team pulled out a win thanks to the setbacks suffered by the other side. Playing against nine I still had the sensation that the game was evenly matched. Our forwards could have done a little more for us." Also, Valencia and Sevilla both won to move to within five points of sixth place and Spains last Europa League spot. Valencia needed an injury-time goal from 19-year-old defender Ruben Vezo in his first start to complete a 2-1 comeback win at home over a feisty Granada. Francisco "Piti" Medina put Granada ahead in the 47th, but as the visitors tired Valencia substitute Paco Alcacer tapped in Sofiane Feghoulis pass to level in the 64th. Valencia kept pressing and Vezo volleyed in a free kick headed on by a defender to claim the hard-fought win. Sevilla won 1-0 at Rayo Vallecano to end a six-game winless streak. After a drab first half by both sides, fullback Jorge "Coke" Andujar headed home Ivan Rakitics free kick to grab the 57th-minute winner at Vallecas Stadium. Unai Emerys team played the last seven minutes with 10 men after Vicente Iborra received his second booking for taking too long to leave the pitch after receiving medical assistance. Rayo remained in second-to-last place and five points from safety after conceding its league worst 59th goal in 25 games. "This was not a day to lose," Rayo defender Jose Castro said. Deion Sanders Jersey .com) - The Oakland Athletics needed to rely on a lot of young pitchers to win an American League West title this season. John Cominsky Jersey .C. -- Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe is resigning after 13 seasons at the school. http://www.cheapfalconsjerseysauthentic.com/ . Messis 75th-minute goal answered some of the criticism the clubs all-time leading scorer had received for his lacklustre performances in the teams recent losses in the league, Champions League and Copa del Rey final. Kendall Sheffield Jersey . MacLean clocked 8:24.91 seconds, eclipsing the previous mark of 8:27.59 set by Brittany Reimer of Victoria at the 2005 FINA World Championships in Montreal. MacLean and Tabitha Baumann of Ottawa -- second in 8:32.37 -- both went under the qualifying standard to be nominated to the Commonwealth Games and Pan Pacific teams. Tony Gonzalez Jersey . Tensions rose in the first period when Penguins defenceman Brooks Orpik hit Bruins forward Loui Eriksson with what appeared to be a clean hit.Each week, The Reporters put their thumbs out to the good and the bad in the world of sports. This week, they discuss the NFL and marijuana, Canadian world champion boxer Bermane Stiverne, Steve Kerrs choice for head coach and FIFA backtracking on Qatar 2022. Dave Naylor, TSN Radio 1050: My thumb is up to the National Football League which - according to reports this week - is planning to soften its penalties for players who test positive for marijuana. Look, even if youre part of the minority which still believes pot should be illegal, its not hard to see the hypocrisy here. The NFL is a down-and-dirty league, where all kinds of nasty stuff happens and players are often welcomed back to the field despite risky and dangerous behavior. And yet, as of now, Clevelands Josh Gordon will miss this coming season because he did something that is legal in two states and which many believe is a safer way to manage the pain associated with pro football than popping pills. What would the NFL be like if the league stopped testing for weed altogether? Well, we have a pretty good idea because in Canada the CFL does not list marijuana as a banned substance. And frankly, no one cares. The NFL has followed the CFLs lead when it comes to the forward pass, two-point converts and a few other things … its time to follow its lead on pot as well. Steve Simmons, Sun Media: My thumb is up Bermane Stiverne, and if you dont know the name, youre not alone. A week ago, Stiverne, the Haitian-born Montreal-raised boxer, won the WBC heavyweight championship. Once upon a time, that was a title that began with Sonny Liston and moved through Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier and Larry Holmes and George Foreman and Mike Tyson and another Canadian of other countries, Lennox Lewis. It was the title of all titles not just in boxing, but in all of sport: heavyweight champion of the world.dddddddddddd Somewhere in time that disappeared, just not the history; now its Stivernes time, after his sixth round stoppage of Chris Arreola in Los Angeles. He might be like Trevor Berbick, a one and done champion. But after all these years, we still remember Berbicks name. Michael Farber, Sports Illustrated: My thumb is up to Steve Kerr for a wise choice. Offered coaching positions with the Knicks and Warriors, the broadcaster took door no. 2, Golden State. The job might not be all rainbows and lollipops because Warrior players are angry former coach Mark Jackson was fired, but it is a better option than Madison Square Garden, the worlds most famous asylum. Kerr wont have to answer to bullying owner James Dolan or face inevitable second-guessing from Knicks president Phil Jackson, a fair coach himself. Golden state provides Kerr with a more talented roster and a better family situation, but mostly if offers a truly precious commodity - sanity. Dave Hodge, TSN: My thumb is down to soccers world governing body, FIFA for managing to sound dumber than its president, Sepp Blatter. Blatter has finally admitted that the selection of Qatar as the site of the 2022 World Cup was a mistake, which, until now, has been obvious to all but FIFA, because if the summertime heat makes it dangerous to watch a soccer match, its probably not a good idea to play in one. But, said Blatter, people do make mistakes. Well, an embarrassed FIFA spokesman tried to distance the organization from Blatters remarks by claiming that Blatter never actually said that Qatar was the wrong choice, which means that Blatter meant...... FIFA made the right choice and it was a mistake. They cant even stand this heat. 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