With a goal in added time, the Danish side put an end to the Groguets’ continental hopes
Villarreal lost at home to Copenhagen (2-3) and saw their chances of qualifying for the next round of the UEFA Champions League come to an end. The yellows succumbed at the very end of an exciting, back-and-forth match in which the groguets did not show the defensive solidity that usually characterises them and which, with a touch of misfortune, ultimately fell the visitors’ way just when the Submarine was closest to completing the comeback. Once again, luck was not on the yellow side in the continent’s premier competition.
Marcelino’s team welcomed the Danish outfit with the ambition of securing their first UEFA Champions League victory and doing justice to the performances they had shown so far in games against prestigious rivals such as Juventus, Manchester City, Borussia Dortmund and Tottenham Hotspur. Only against the Italians had the Groguets managed to take a point.
The excitement, combined with the need to beat Copenhagen to stay alive in the thrilling fight to progress from the league phase of the UEFA Champions League, raised the spirits of a Submarine who had been successfully turning their excellent domestic form into results in the league. It was time to do the same in Europe.
The numerous absences affecting the Yellows did not make the task any easier. Without Gerard Moreno, Dani Parejo, Thomas Partey, Santiago Mouriño and the suspended Foyth, Marcelino opted for a starting eleven that combined physical presence and pace, with Luiz Júnior, Pau Navarro, Rafa Marín, Renato Veiga, Alfonso Pedraza, Buchanan, Comesaña, Gueye, Moleiro, Pepe and Mikautadze.
Despite the determination with which Villarreal stepped onto the pitch, Copenhagen found the breakthrough almost immediately. Before the second minute had elapsed, Elyounoussi turned a superb cross from Marcos López on the left into the back of the net.
Needing a win, the Submarine did not drop their heads despite conceding such an early 0-1. The team responded to the goal by increasing the intensity of their play and showing superiority in individual duels.
In the 20th minute, Villarreal had a clear opportunity to level the score. After controlling the ball deep inside the area, Santi Comesaña was unable to finish off a promising move on the left side. The Galician midfielder made contact with the ball, but it slipped away from him and he could not get a shot away.
A quarter of an hour later, Villarreal came close again. In the 37th minute, a header from Nicolas Pepe forced Kotarski into an excellent reflex save to prevent the equaliser. Marcelino’s side pushed to level the match before the break but could not find the reward of a goal.
After the interval, Marcelino made a triple attacking change in search of freshness and precision in the final third. Ayoze, Oluwaseyi and Akhomach came on for Mikautadze, Pepe and Buchanan. The move paid off immediately. Within a minute of the restart, the Submarine made it 1-1. A dangerous cross from Ilias Akhomach was turned in at the far post by Comesaña.
The equaliser lifted the La Cerámica crowd, although their joy was short lived. Copenhagen restarted the match and scored almost instantly. Newly arrived on the pitch, Achouri beat Luiz Júnior after meeting a driven cross from Zague on the right. The Danish side made it 1-2, forcing Villarreal to throw everything forward once again.
In the 55th minute, Tani Oluwaseyi struck a superb finish to make it 2-2. The Canadian forward received the ball on the edge of the box, controlled it and unleashed a spectacular left-footed shot with the outside of his boot to equalise, capping off a trademark bursting run from Alfonso Pedraza.
Tani’s goal reignited the passion inside La Cerámica, where the fans never stopped believing in the comeback. As the hour mark passed and the score remained level, the match turned into an exchange of blows between an energetic Villarreal eager to score a third and a Copenhagen side who remained patient and looked to punish the Submarine in transition.
The game remained open, lively and with everything still to play for heading into the closing stages. Villarreal needed a win and Copenhagen, having gone ahead twice, were still aiming to take all three points at La Cerámica. In the 75th minute, the Submarine squandered a fantastic chance to make it 3-2. Neither Tani nor Ilias managed to get a clean strike on a dangerous cross from Comesaña inside the area.
The Yellows continued to push forward. They needed a goal to stay alive in the Champions League, although time was running out at La Cerámica. Approaching the 90th minute, Ayoze missed the target with a dangerous delivery from Solomon on the left.
With regulation time already complete, Cornelius made it 2-3 by taking advantage of a rebound inside the home box. Copenhagen took the win and left the Submarine with no chance of advancing to the next round of the continent’s top competition. A competition in which luck has turned its back on Villarreal this season.
