26th goal. A pass from Jaden Schwartz hit Steens right skate i

BARCELONA, Spain -- Barcelonas title defence took a blow when it stumbled to a 1-0 defeat at Valladolid, missing the chance to move top of the Spanish standings on Saturday ahead of its Champions League clash with Manchester City at Camp Nou. Atletico Madrid took advantage of Barcelonas latest slip by winning 2-0 at Celta Vigo courtesy of David Villas two goals in a three-minute span to move ahead of Barcelona and level on points with Real Madrid at the top of the standings. Once the league pacesetter, Barcelona has won just two of its last seven away league games and trails its title rivals by one point before Madrid hosts Levante on Sunday. Lionel Messi was the only Barcelona player who looked sharp, while his teammates were plagued by uncharacteristic passing errors and again proved brittle at the back. Valladolid outplayed the defending champions early and midfielder Fausto Rossi netted the winner in the 17th minute. The relegation-threatened side then did well to protect three points against the star-studded visitors for the remainder. After its strong start this season under first-year coach Gerardo Martino, Barcelona has dropped points in five of the last nine rounds. "As long as it is mathematically possible we will keep fighting," said Martino, whose team visits Madrid in two weeks. "We are not in our best form, and we have to rediscover it within 15 days. We are worried because the league title is being decided right now." Before the clasico, however, Martino will have to regroup his team against City on Wednesday. Barcelona will be looking to protect its 2-0 lead in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie. Valladolid started the round in the drop zone, but the big win -- only its fifth in 27 rounds -- provisionally pulled it out of danger. "Its an incredible result," said Rossi, who was at Valladolid on loan from Juventus. "All together we can save this team." Also, last-place Real Betis gave a boost to its slim hopes of staying up by beating Getafe 2-0 in Seville, while Villarreal lost 2-0 at Granada to falter in the race for fourth place. After Barcelona lost 3-1 at Real Sociedad in its last league away match, Martino aligned his best 11 available without Andres Iniesta, who didnt travel with the team for undisclosed personal reasons. Even so, Barcelona lacked its regular cool composure from the start and failed to dominate possession until it was trailing in the score. Holding midfielder Sergio Busquets, usually so sure with the ball, erred on three passes before the 25-minute mark. By that time Valladolid had threatened Barcelonas area and taken the lead when Rossi finished off a rebound after both his first attempt and Javi Guerras follow-up had hit defenders. Messis solo effort saved by goalkeeper Diego Marino in the 10th was all the visitors could muster in the first half hour. Messi, who showed no signs of his apparent vomiting from Argentinas 0-0 draw against Romania this week, used a burst of speed to break free in the 48th, only to be denied again by Marino. Messi got little help. Neymar had a quiet match and sailed his only scoring chance over the bar before he was substituted. Atletico was without suspended leading scorer Diego Costa. That meant Villa, who was dropped from Spains squad for its friendly with Italy, got the nod up front. And after a dull first half, the former Barcelona striker notched his 12th and 13th league goals of the campaign. Villa first pounced on a poor pass by Celtas Jonathan Castro, dodged Andreu Fontas last-ditch tackle, and drilled the ball beyond goalkeeper Yoel Rodriguez in the 62nd. He slotted in his second goal to seal the victory two minutes later. "Every point is important and we have to go forward game by game," said Villa. "Each game is a final and we have to win them all." Atletico hosts AC Milan on Tuesday in the last-16 of the Champions League after winning their first meeting 1-0. Betis won thanks to first-half goals from forwards Leo Baptistao and Ruben Castro to keep the hapless Getafe winless in 12 consecutive rounds and only one point from relegation. Cheap Authentic Air Max 97 .com) - Nate Buss 3-pointer with 5. Cheap Air Max 97 Wholesale .A. Happ is coming off his first start of the year, a win at Philadelphia Monday. The former Phillie allowed three hits in five scoreless frames of a 3-0 triumph. http://www.cheapairmax97ireland.com/ . - Chris Davis hit a two-run double, scoring Nelson Cruz in his Orioles debut in Baltimores 9-7 win over to the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday. Cheap Air Max 97 Sale . Each day, TSN.ca provides the latest rumours, reports and speculation from around the NHL beat. Defensive Depth TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun is reporting the Toronto Maple Leafs have considerable interest in unrestricted free-agent defenceman Dan Boyle. Air Max 97 Ireland .com) - Calgary Flames forward Johnny Gaudreau has been selected as the NHLs Rookie of the Month for December, the league announced Friday.NEW YORK -- While growing up in New Rochelle, N.Y., Kevin Shattenkirk watched Rangers defenceman Brian Leetch score many big goals. Given a chance to do the same at Madison Square Garden, the St. Louis Blues blue-liner made the most of his opportunity. Shattenkirk fired in the tiebreaking power-play goal early in the third period, and the Blues got the best of New York again in a 2-1 victory Thursday night. "There were a lot of emotions going through my body, but after the first couple of shifts it just felt like a hockey game again," Shattenkirk said. "Once the goal happened, even more of a relief. I was happy and you could hear some people cheering." Shattenkirk had his own rooting section. He secured 20 tickets himself, but estimated that 60 or 70 people he knows got tickets on their own to watch him play. He could hear them when he one-timed a pass from Alex Pietrangelo through a screen and past goalie Henrik Lundqvist -- a la Leetch -- at 3:09 for his eighth goal of the season. "There are a lot of things that I watched in him growing up, and he was a very special player. I try to emulate him as best as I can," Shattenkirk said. "Those were areas that he always shined in." Alexander Steen also had a goal for the Blues before leaving late in the second period with a lower-body injury. David Backes had two assists, and Jaroslav Halak made 34 saves in beating Lundqvist in a matchup of Olympic goalies. New Yorks Rick Nash scored his sixth goal in four games -- netting at least one in each -- but Shattenkirk took advantage of Nashs slashing penalty, scoring 9 seconds into the power play. Lundqvist made 23 saves in his return from a one-game absence caused by the flu. He allowed fewer than three goals for the seventh straight game, but still couldnt find a way to stop the Blues -- the only NHL team he has never beaten (0-4). "I was moving the way I wanted to," Lundqvist said. "I am happy with the way I played, but its still very disappointing to not come out of here with at least one point." St. Louis, which killed all three Rangers power plays, swept the two-game season series and has won seven of the past eight meetings. The Blues, beaten 7-1 at New Jersey on Tuesday, have earrned points in eight straight visits to Madison Square Garden.dddddddddddd This was their first since Nov. 7, 2010. "Its shameful that we havent been here more often," Backes said. "You see the crowd, youre in the city for a day or two, you feel that hype, and you know what playing the New York Rangers brings. I think it brought the best out of us." The Rangers got even late in the second on Nashs team-leading 17th goal. Derek Stepan sent a pass from behind the net to Nash, who stepped into a slap shot from the dot in the left circle and ripped a drive past Halak with 1:43 left. New York pressured the Blues for the remainder of the period and drew its second power play in the closing seconds. "We had a couple good looks," Rangers captain Ryan Callahan said, "a couple Grade-A chances there right in front. We just didnt get one past them there." The Rangers outshot the Blues 28-18 through 40 minutes. "Theyre a team that if we wouldve taken off the gas for 60 seconds, it couldve been 3-2 the other way in a heartbeat," Backes said. Steen gave the Blues a 1-0 lead with his 26th goal. A pass from Jaden Schwartz hit Steens right skate in front of the crease, caromed off Lundqvists stick and skate and trickled in at 8:38. The goal was briefly reviewed by video replay, and it was determined that the puck wasnt kicked into the net. It was the fifth straight goal allowed by the Rangers since they had a 3-1 lead over the Islanders in the second period on Tuesday in a 5-3 loss. A late power-play goal was the winner in that one, too. Steen struggled to get to the bench after going hard into the boards in the second, but he was back soon after on the power play. He skated off for good with 2:57 left in the period. Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said Steen is day to day. NOTES: Nash has 21 goals and 40 points in 50 games versus the Blues. ... Steen has 14 career points against the Rangers and 12 in the past seven games -- including six goals. ... Schwartz played in his 100th NHL game. ... Blues C Maxim Lapierre was activated from the injured list after missing five games due to a lower body injury. ... Newly acquired D Kevin Klein made his Rangers debut. ... St. Louis C Derek Roy was a healthy scratch. ' ' '