Villarreal CF draw against Rangers FC on Matchday 1 of the UEFA Europa League
Villarreal CF drew against Rangers FC in a match that the Yellows went in front twice in, but in the end only came away with a point on Matchday 1 of the UEFA Europa League group stage. The Yellows goals came from Carlos Bacca and Gerard Moreno, while Scott Arfield and Kyle Lafferty scored for the Scottish side.
Javi Calleja made some changes to his side once again, giving some players a rest that played against CD Leganés. The inclusion of Miguel Llambrich stood out most, the Yellows youngster playing his first UEFA Europa League match. He was put on at right back and Argentinean Ramiro Funes Mori, who usually plays at centre back, played as a defensive centre midfielder.
There was barely time to blink until the first goal of the game went in. Bacca hunted down a ball on the edge of the box and hit a half volley just right with the outside of his boot to send the ball past Allan McGregor and into the top corner. Brilliant. With only a few seconds on the clock the Yellow Submarine had taken control of the score board.
A goal up, the Yellow Submarine were in control of the game. They looked comfortable in defence and wanted to kill the game off as soon as possible. Santi Cazorla tried to do just that with a shot from distance which forced the Rangers’ goalkeeper to make a great save.
After the half-time break, the match opened up. Rangers were able to get the equaliser through Arfield, who put the ball in the back of the net after a pass from Daniel Candeias from the right (1-1, m. 66). Only two minutes later, Villarreal responded and made it 2-1 through Gerard, who had only been on the pitch for three minutes. It was after an impeccable piece of play from the Yellow Submarine, which ended with a pass from Cazorla to Gerard, who cut inside and drilled his shot in at the near post.
The Scottish outfit weren’t out of the game though. Lafferty put the ball past Andrés Fernández, from a cross from the left hand side (2-2, min. 75).
In the 78th minute, Samu Chukwueze came on for his debut. The Nigerian attacker played his first match for the Yellows first team, replacing Nicola Sansone. Villarreal went for the victory until the final whistle, throwing everything but the kitchen sink. Their best chance came from the head of Bacca, with the Colombian’s effort going just wide after a cross from Llambrich. In the other match in Group G, Rapid Vienna beat Spartak Moscow 2-0.
Villarreal’s next match will be this Sunday against Valencia CF at the Estadio de la Cerámica. This passionate derby will take place at 4:45pm CEST.
Lineups:
Villarreal CF: Andrés Fernández; M. Llambrich, Bonera, Víctor Ruiz, Pedraza; Funes Mori (Gerard, m. 65); Sansone (Samu Chukweze, m. 78), P. Fornals, S. Cazorla; Toko Ekambi (M. Trigueros, m. 60), Bacca.
Rangers FC: McGregor; Tavernier, Worrall, Goldson, Barisic (Dorrans, m. 84); Coulibaly (Middleton, m. 69), Halliday, Arfield; Daniel Candeias (McCrorie, m. 77), Kent, Lafferty.
Goals: 1-0. Min. 1: Bacca. 1-1. Min. 66: Arfield. 2-1. Min. 68: Gerard. 2-2. Min, 75: Lafferty.
Referee: Istvan Kovacs (Romania). Booked: M. Llambrich (Villarreal); Goldson and Dorrans (Rangers).
Match information: Matchday 1 of the UEFA Europa League group stage at the Estadio de la Cerámica in front of an attendance of 15,816.
