An early own goal and a late Kalu Uche strike helped lowly Almeria record their third victory at the expense of Osasuna.

Almeria, who started the game in the bottom five after losing three of their previous four matches, got the perfect start when Osasuna defender Josetxo deflected the ball into his own net and then Uche secured the points with his side's second in the 89th minute.

The victory lifts Almeria up to mid-table, level on 12 points with Osasuna, who had lost just once in their previous seven league and cup games but found it tough to get going today.

Almeria coach Hugo Sanchez had stressed the importance of picking up three points from this fixture after losing 3-0 against Valencia in their last home match, as well as being held to disappointing draws by Real Valladolid and Racing Santander in front of their own fans this season.

That form was in contrast to last term when Almeria boasted one of the best home records in the division, winning 11 of their 19 matches and losing just four - which was one of the main reasons they were able to avoid the drop, as they won just twice away.

Sanchez will therefore have been delighted to see his side take the lead inside the opening two minutes today, even though they needed a huge slice of luck to go ahead.

Guilherme broke down the left towards the Osasuna goalline and his cross was pushed out by visiting goalkeeper Ricardo straight at team-mate Josetxo, who could do nothing as the ball hit him in the chest before rebounding into the net.

Almeria came close to doubling their lead in the 20th minute when Fernando Soriano glanced on Juanma Ortiz's free-kick with his head, but Ricardo did well to save diving away to his right.

That was the closest either side would come to adding to the scoreline before the break, with both teams showing some wayward shooting when the rare opportunity presented itself.

It was a similar story after the break, with Osasuna striker Walter Pandiani seemingly having a great opening early on only to fail to get a clean contact on a cross and glance a header wide when unmarked.

Both sides continued to waste half-chances, although Osasuna looked set to draw level in the 67th minute when Javad Nekounam raced onto a pull-back near the penalty area.

However, his shot was blocked by some desperate Almeria defending before the loose ball flicked off Pandiani at the far post before going out for a corner.

Sanchez's hopes of that much-needed victory were still on hold as Osasuna tried hard to force a breakthrough, but Almeria finally sealed the points when Uche fired home late on.

Pablo Piatti passed the ball into the area to fellow substitute Jose Ortiz, who immediately moved it on to Kalu and he controlled the ball, swivelled on the spot and drove a low shot just inside the post to end the contest.