Villarreal is defeated in the King’s Cup semifinal against Barcelona (1-3)
All heads held high. Villarreal falls to Barcelona in the second leg of the semifinals after a historical performance in the Spanish Cup. The Yellows have given everything until the end and are able to proudly leave the tournament during an ovation from the crowd.
The match started exactly how it wasn’t supposed to start. Neymar received a high through pass from Messi and put the ball behind Asenjo after only having played three minutes. Even though the Yellow Submarine now needed three goals to equalize, nobody lost faith in a good outcome.
In fact, the Yellows had the most of opportunities in the first half. Cheryshev and Uche both created chances to score, before Jonathan dos Santos pulled the trigger in the 39th minute. The versatile midfielder finished the cross from Jaume Costa sublimely and brought excitement to the fans, who continued to believe in what could have been an incredible advancement.
Villarreal created several more chances in the opening minutes of the second half, before Pina beclouded the outlook of the match. In the 64th minute, the referee had every right to send Pina on his way to the locker room after an absurd charge on Neymar.
Approximately fifteen minutes before the end, Barcelona put their own house in order again. Luis Suárez converted a through ball from Mascherano, after outplaying Asenjo, to retake the lead and surely put his team in the final. The match was almost over when Barcelona’s third goal fell. Neymar used his head on a cross from Xavi to secure the victory.
After the elimination, the crowd gave an ovation to their players, who have reached the semifinals for the first time in club history. Now that Villarreal is out of the tournament, it can draw their attention to playing the Round of 16 of the Europa League and maintaining their current sixth position in the league. The hopes and dreams continue.
Match Facts:
Villarreal CF: Asenjo; Mario, Musacchio, Victor Ruiz, Jaume Costa; Jonathan dos Santos, Pina, Trigueros (Moi Gómez /74), Cheryshev (Campbell /68); Uche (Giovani /61), Vietto
FC Barcelona: Ter Stegen; Montoya, Piqué, Mascherano (Rakitic /75), Jordi Alba; Rafinha (Xavi /64), Busquets (Mathieu /41), Iniesta; Messi, Suárez, Neymar
Goals: (0-1) Neymar 3’, (1-1) Jonathan dos Santos 39’, (1-2) Suárez 73’, (1-3) Neymar 88’
Yellow Cards: Jonathan dos Santos, Cheryshev, Campbell, Piqué / Red Cards: Pina
Referee: Fernández Borbalán
Stadium: El Madrigal
