What could have been a direct battle for fifth place has been somewhat dampened by the results achieved by both contenders in the last three league games. Villarreal and Athletic face off this afternoon (6:00 pm with Del Cerro Grande refereeing) at the Estadio de la Cerámica with contrasting continental views. The yellows, fifth in the table, are at the same distance from the Champions League as their rojiblancos.
Seven points difference which, with fifteen to play, seems like an unattainable barrier for both, although in football it is advisable not to take anything for granted until the math says so. Quique Setién’s men, who are waiting for results, will have to settle for the Europa League and Valverde’s men, due to their consecutive defeats in San Mamés against the two teams from Seville and the league sprint carried out by Girona, will be difficult, if not impossible, to obtain a continental passport. The options, it is true, even if they leave to fight for a place in the Europa League, but even the Conference has become expensive.
Today’s match doesn’t look good for Athletic. The lions arrived in Villarreal with part of their starting defense in the infirmary, although there is good news that Yeray is finally part of the expedition. Another strange thing is that Barakaldo’s will come from the game, although there is no reason to remove it. The rojiblanco coach thus recovered one of his central defenders at the last minute, but Iñigo Martínez is still out with injury and Vivian is suspended. It remains to wait, in any case, to find out who is with Paredes in the axis of the rear.
From there, everything is possible in the Bilbao team regarding the composition of the medullary line. If Valverde bets on Dani García or Vesga as the second central defender in case Yeray is not available to start, one slot is free in the double pivot. If Balenziaga or even Lekue is the man assigned to accompany Paredes in the axis of defense; The question is whether his two teammates will repeat in the middle with Sancet up front or one of them will occupy a place on the bench with Ander Herrera or even if Muniain is exercising in wide place. Above it seems more likely that the rojiblanco coach will choose Williams on the wing with Guruzeta or even Raúl García as a striker.
in good time
Villarreal, for their part, come to the thirty-fourth matchday with a good feeling and a good mood both in terms of form and results. While the lions lost at home against Sevilla and Betis with a tie in between in Mallorca, Quique’s men beat Espanyol (4-2) and Celta (3-1) at home and signed a draw at Mestalla (1-1).
The groguet team recovered Gerard Moreno in Valencia after more than a month of vacation. Lo Celso, another important part of the yellow team, has also been called up, although he will start on the bench, as Setién himself advanced yesterday.
Villarreal have played 16 games at home, with a record of ten wins, two draws and four losses. The yellows, who started the season with Emery as coach, scored 27 goals at home and conceded 15.
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
