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Villarreal maintain hope of going to the group stages of the Champions League in their visit to the Stade Louis II in Monaco.
The good news are that Víctor Ruiz and Jaume Costa are back for the encounter, while Leo Suárez has also been included in the squad list against Monaco. Regardless, I don’t see Jaume Costa starting but we’ll see. Additionally, Bruno will be available despite missing the league opener against Granada in Los Cármenes due to some back pain discomfort.
It might be a good time to emphasize how good Castillejo has been in his last two games for Villarreal. He was very lived against Monaco at El Madrigal, being active and providing some dangerous crosses. He culminated the week on a high note with a magnificent free kick beating Mexican international keep Guillermo Ochoa. We hope that’s the beginning of some encouraging and consistent performances from Castillejo. Will he keep momentum against Monaco?. We highly hope so...
Speaking of Castillejo, he made some interesting statements at the end of the game...
"Necesitaba que alguien me diera confianza y me hablara flojito",
.@SamuCastillejo "Necesitaba que alguien me diera confianza y me hablara flojito"
— Radio Vila-real (@EsportsVila) August 20, 2016
Which translates to “I needed some who would grant me confidence and talk to me loosely.” Um... Somewhat of a reminder for Marcelino perhaps.... Anyways. We are all glad to see Castillejo finally living up to his potential.
Sources have confirmed the approach of the club towards Giancarlos Gonzalez. He didn’t feature in Palermo’s home opener loss against Sassuolo as he remained an unused substitute. This further fuels speculation he’s leaving Palermo with Villarreal and Olympiakos as the most viable options.
Monaco news:
The Monegasque side won their Saturday away match against FC Nantes featuring a side composed in its majority of substitutes. Only Subašić, Mendy, and Glik started from the last match against Villarreal. Lemar, Germain and Bakayoko entered later on as second half subs. Moutinho played the entirety of the match. I have a feeling he might start tomorrow to give Monaco more control in midfield.
We’re all hopeful at VillarrealUSA of turning the tables and advance to the group stages. Let us know your comments in the section below.
Endavant Villarreal!.