Villarreal learn opponent for next round of Copa del Rey

Villarreal now know who they will face in the next round of the Copa del Rey.

The Yellows kicked off their cup campaign for the season in their final game before the World Cup.

Quique Setién’s men made easy work of Santa Amalia, winning 9-0 thanks to goals from Diego Raya, Alex Baena, Jose Luis Morales, Samu Chukwueze, Francis Coquelin, Gerard Moreno (2) and Etienne Capoue.

For the next round, the Copa del Rey remains seeded, heavily favouring the best teams, with Villarreal among the 14 teams in the top category.

La Liga teams will play away again in the next round, with the lowest seeded teams guaranteed home ties.

And Villarreal will face Guijuelo, a fifth-tier team competing in the Tercera División RFEF.

Guijuelo are based in the Castilla and León area, in Salamanca. For those not caught up on Spanish geography, that’s just a couple of hours away from Madrid, albeit the far side from Vila-real.

It’s a six hour and 22 minute drive from Vila-real, so a flight to Salamanca wouldn’t go amiss.

Villarreal should be confident of progressing, of course, but the magic of the cup should never be underestimated.

The clash will be played on December 21, when most World Cup players should have returned, as long as they don’t reach the semi-finals or final stages.