Spanish La Liga match report: Levante 2 Granada 1

Levante scored twice in the final two minutes to earn a 2-1 victory against fellow Primera Division strugglers Granada and boost their chances of beating the drop in the process.

Granada appeared destined for all three points after Youssef El Arabi's 13th-minute penalty gave them the lead, but lost their grip on the match when they were reduced to nine men with Adrian Colunga and El Arabi shown late red cards.

Levante defender Ivan Ramis was also dismissed for his angry exchange with El Arabi, but the hosts equalised with two minutes remaining when Roberto Camarasa, who handled to concede the first-half penalty, scored with a superb 25-yard volley.

Levante then stole all three points when David Barral beat the offside trap to curl home from close range in the third minute of time-added-on as the Valencia side closed to within one point of 17th-placed Elche and safety.

Both sides made a tentative start to the Estadi Ciutat de Valencia encounter with chances at a premium in the opening minutes.

La Liga Football

A game devoid of any early clear-cut scoring opportunities had its first goal in the 13th minute when referee Alfonso Alvarez awarded Granada a penalty after concluding that midfielder Camarasa had handled in the area.

Up stepped El Arabi and he made no mistake, sending Levante goalkeeper Diego Marino the wrong way as he despatched his inch-perfect spot kick into the left corner to register his first goal in six league matches.

Levante were not sparked into life by going behind and it took until the 37th minute for them to register a serious effort on goal and even then striker Barral could only fire over the bar from 12 yards out.

Camarasa had the chance to make amends on the stroke of half-time but his close-range effort was comfortably saved by Granada keeper Oier.

Antonio Tono tried to draw Levante level eight minutes after the restart but he blazed his 25-yard shot over the crossbar, prompting manager Lucas Alcaraz to make a double substitution.

Granada striker Colunga was sent off in the 73rd minute for a tackle from behind on Barral and tempers flared once again in the 80th minute when El Arabi and Ramis were dismissed for a needless coming together.

Camarasa went from zero to hero when he unleashed a sweetly-struck 25-yard volley that Oier had no chance of keeping out, and the home supporters went wild five minutes later when Barral slotted home after a fine flick-on from Kalu Uche to complete a remarkable Levante recovery.

Victory for Levante saw them move above Granada into 18th place, with 22 points gleaned from their 24 league fixtures.

Lucas Alcaraz's side can move out of the relegation zone if they beat Rayo Vallecano on Saturday, with Elche in action at Celta Vigo on Monday.