Nice win, but it may ring hollow at season's end. Of note: Ibagaza should stick around next season, and Cani may be the most improved player in the Garrido era.
Some news clips:
- A team recaps from the club website and Marca.
- The B team lost 2-5 to Las Palmas after Juan Carlos was sent off in 9'. Only their second home loss all season. Game recaps from the club website and Marca.
Scenarios to make Europe:
- Beat Getafe's result (away to Atletico) next weekend. In this case, we would finish in 6th place. This is the simplest and most likely scenario (even if rather unlikely).
- To qualify as the 7th-place finisher, Sevilla would have to finish 5th in La Liga, win the Copa del Rey, and Fulham would have to win the Europa League. Sounds rather arcane, but essentially Atletico needs to finish outside of Europe and Mallorca must qualify for the Champions League. This scenario may be moot by midweek.
It will be a long summer if Villarreal fails to qualify for Europe. Player sales and budget cuts are coming, so it would be nice to end the season on a positive note. At a minimum, we need to do our part next weekend in Zaragoza (without Llorente and Capdevila).