Villarreal draw against Deportivo and will play for it all on the last day of the LaLiga Santander
Villarreal were held to a goalless draw by RC Deportivo at the Estadio de la Cerámica and will play to qualify for next season’s UEFA Europa League on the last day of the LaLiga Santander. The Yellows had plenty of chances on goal, but could not convert past Lux. With this result, Fran Escribá’s side remain in fifth place in the table, as the teams chasing them, Athletic Club and Real Sociedad, also drew in their respective games.
The Yellows dominated from the start, but it took a while before they had a clear goal scoring opportunity. One of the best chances fell to the boots of Jonathan dos Santos. From a short corner kick the Mexican midfielder skipped around his defender and his shot just went wide of the post (m.28).
As the first half was about to come to a close the controversy began. Villarreal almost took the lead with a great header by Álvaro from a corner, but Lux kept it out on his goal line. Roberto Soldado tried to convert the rebound but was given a yellow card by the referee for dangerous play. The Deportivo goalkeeper subsequently pushed Soldado to the ground and the referee deemed a yellow card sufficient for him too.
Villarreal’s dominance intensified in the second half. Deportivo were playing for the draw, as this was enough to keep them up, and so did not take many risks. Sitting back well in their half, they looked to attack quickly on the counter to create danger. So, the Submarine were firmly in possession of the ball.
The Yellows kept trying until the end. Again and again they hit the Deportivo brick wall. And in the one very clear chance they had they could not finish. Jaume Costa attacked down the left wing, got to the goal line and put a great driven cross in to Bakambu, but the numer 17 did not connect well with the ball at point-blank range. Unlucky.
The last and decisive match for Villarreal is next Sunday against Valencia CF at the Mestalla (4:45pm CET).
Lineups:
Villarreal CF: Andrés Fernández; Mario, Bonera, Álvaro, Jaume Costa; Jonathan dos Santos (Rodrigo, m. 89), Trigueros (Sansone, m. 69), Bruno, Samu Castillejo; Bakambu and Soldado (Adrián, m. 74).
RC Deportivo: Lux; Juanfran, Arribas, Albentosa, Fernando Navarro; Carles Gil (Bruno Gama, m. 82), Guilherme, Borges, Ola John (Fajr, m. 62); Emre (Mosquera, m. 89) and Andone.
Referee: Gil Manzano (Extremadura, Spain). Cautioned: Trigueros and Soldado fro Villarreal; Lux, Andone, Fajr and Borges for Deportivo.
Match Information: Match corresponding to Matchday 37 of the LaLiga Santander played at the Estadio de la Cerámica in front of 16,437 spectators. In the moments before the match we paid our respects to Moisés Jiménez ‘Moi’ and Ramón Palmer, CD Roda coach and Marea Groga Fan Club member respectively, who recently passed away.
