MADRID, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- A 56th minute penalty scored by midfielder Javi Martinez helped Athletic Club Bilbao to a 1-1 draw away to Norwegian side Tromsoe and assured the Primera Liga club's place in the group stage of the Europa League.
The 1-1 draw was enough for Athletic to take advantage of the 3-2 win from the home leg in the San Mames Stadium a week ago and means that Spain has three representatives in the Europa League.
Tromsoe equalized through Rushfeld five minutes after Athletic's goal, but despite attacking for the last 20 minutes, the Norwegian side was unable to score a second, which would have seen them through on away goals.
Meanwhile Valencia and Villarreal enjoyed comfortable nights, thanks to the easy wins they had taken in the first leg tie of their respective qualifying rounds.
Villarreal had won 3-1 against Dutch side NAC Breda and the side coached by Ernest Valverde had few problems against a demoralized rival and was leading 3-0 after just 37 minutes.
Santi Cazorla and two Guiseppi Rossi penalties sealed the tie in the first half, while Jonathan Pereira, Marcos Senna and Kiko rounded the win off in the second half and ensured a 9-2 aggregate win.
Valencia had won 3-0 away to Norwegian side Stabeck and followed that result with a comfortable home win with a side filled with fringe players.
Miku scored twice before the break and Nikola Zigic added a third 15 minutes from time and Miku completed his hat-trick before the end to give Valencia a 4-1 win on the night, 7-1 on aggregate.
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