Villarreal-Valencia in La Liga: a closely contested derby

Here are some stats going into Saturday’s matchup:

All-time (league only): Villarreal 15 wins, Valencia 13, 7 draws

All-time Valencia leading scorers in derbies: David Villa and John Carew, 5 each; Baraja, 4; Aimar, 3.

All-time Villarreal leading scorers in derbies: Riquelme, 5; Forlán, Llorente, and Rossi, 4 each; Gio dos Santos, 3.

Only player to score for both teams? Roberto Soldado, though technically Manu Trigueros, with an own goal as well as a goal for Villarreal in the same match, qualifies.

As the leading scorers suggest, Valencia were dominant in the early years (6-2-2 in the first 10 matchups), Villarreal were dominant in the 2004-2010 period (8-3-2 in the next 13). Valencia won 4 of the next 6 (through the end if the 2014-15 season) but Villarreal have won 4 of the last 6, their only loss coming at home, 2-0, in 2017.

Carlos Bacca scored the only goal of the match in our 1-0 win at the Mestalla earlier this season. Interesting that of our currently active players, only Bacca, Trigueros and Sansone have scored against Valencia. Javi Fuego scored twice against us; while Santi Mina and Carlos Soler are the only Valencia players who have scored against us.

And for you trivia buffs: (1) that Mestalla match was the last game Cedric Bakambu played for Villarreal, substituted in the 80th minute. Little did we know he’d be heading to China....

(2) Marcelino is the first coach to coach for and against both teams; Calleja is the first to both play in the derby and coach the derby (both for Villarreal, of course)

And, it’s a bit out of date now, but still worth watching, this “Derby Days” segment from 2015 about the “Battle of the Brothers”:

ENDAVANT VILLARREAL!!!