Villarreal get the job done

How sweet it is! Villarreal went to the Mestalla and came away with a 3-1 victory over Valencia, winning there for the second year in a row. The Yellow Submarine got a goal in the first minute from Roberto Soldado (a Santos defensive error helping things along) and held that lead until Nani, who was by far Valencia’s best player on the day, equalized shortly after the break.

However, Manu Trigueros slotted the ball home from a Jona dos Santos cross just before the hour mark to give Villarreal the lead again. Los Che had a great chance to equalize in the 70th minute, but Andres Fernandez made a fine save to keep the score at 2-1. And in the 88th minute Nicola Sansone and Adrian Lopez, who had both come on as subs, combined on a counterattack, the Italian notching the goal. 3-1 final, fifth place in La Liga achieved, and a spot in the Europa league group stage.

Real Sociedad could only draw at Celta, but that point gave them sixth place as Atletic Bilbao lost 3-1 to Atleti. So, Los Leones have to wait until the Copa del Rey final to see if they get into the Europa League or not.

Now to prepare a celebratory paella (it’s only 10AM here in California!!)

Endavant Villarreal!!!