Atletico Madrid went two points clear at the top of La Liga as a blunder from Levante goalkeeper Diego Marino gave Diego Simeone's side a 1-0 win on Saturday.
Defending champions Barcelona's 0-0 draw at Espanyol earlier in the day afforded Atletico the chance to gain a slender lead at the summit.
Fortune was not on Atletico's side for much of the encounter despite the capital city club dominating at the Vicente Calderon.
The 22-year-old's tame effort somehow slipped under the arm of Marino to wrap up all three points and send Atletico first as they bid to regain the title they lost to Barca last season.
It did not take long for Simeone's men to demonstrate their superiority as they quickly began to dictate proceedings, Martinez forcing a smart save from Diego Marino in the sixth minute.
Atletico were aggrieved not to have been awarded a spot-kick following Ivan Lopez's sliding challenge on Angel Correa and Levante continued to live dangerously - only the crossbar preventing Stefan Savic from opening the scoring with a near-post header from a corner.
For all of Atletico's dominance they were fortunate not to fall behind when Levante captain Verza powered narrowly wide on the half-hour mark.
However, Atletico's frustration finally came to an end as Thomas dribbled skilfully into the box, his side-footed shot eluding the grasp of Marino and rolling over the line to give the 2013-14 champions the advantage in the race for the title.
