Villarreal suffer derby defeat to Levante to continue poor La Liga form

Villarreal suffered a second consecutive defeat on Saturday afternoon, losing the Valencian Community Derby to Levante.

The Yellow Submarine came into this one off the back of a disappointing defeat to relegation-threatened Cadiz before the international break.

And they followed that up with a defeat to bottom club Levante away from home today, losing further ground in the race for the top six.

That was despite the return of Gerard Moreno, who made his first start since returning from injury today.

The Yellow Submarine fell due to a Jose Luis Morales double, one in the 69th minute and another in stoppage time, with Las Granotas giving themselves a fighting chance, though still five points from safety at the bottom of the table.

Unai Emery’s men dominated possession at Estadio de la Comunitat, but once again failed to take their chances against so-called ‘lesser’ opposition.

It’s a problem Emery must address with urgency if he wants his side playing in the Europa League next season, and this is far from ideal preparation for the Champions League quarter-final clash with Bayern Munich on Wednesday.