Villarreal's pursuit of fourth-placed Athletic Bilbao in the La Liga table will continue on Saturday evening, when they welcome relegation-threatened Valencia to Estadio de la Ceramica.
The Yellow Submarine are currently fifth, four points behind fourth-placed Athletic, while Valencia sit 18th, but the visitors will enter this match off the back of successive wins in Spain's top flight.
Match preview
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Villarreal have a record of 11 wins, seven draws and five defeats from their 23 La Liga matches this season, with a total of 40 points leaving them in fifth, four points off fourth-placed Athletic and five clear of sixth-placed Rayo Vallecano.
Marcelino's side are in strong form, picking up 10 points from their last four matches, beating Mallorca, Real Valladolid and Las Palmas, scoring 11 times in the process, in addition to drawing 1-1 away to Atletico Madrid.
The Yellow Submarine have been full of goals this season, finding the back of the net on 46 occasions in their 23 matches, which is the third-best attacking record behind Real Madrid (51) and Barcelona (64).
Marcelino's team have conceded 34 times, though, and that will need to improve in order to stand a chance of claiming a top-four spot for the first time since the 2015-16 campaign.
Villarreal were 1-0 winners in the corresponding match between the two sides last season, but it was 1-1 at Mestalla back in August, and Valencia will enter Saturday's intriguing contest in strong form.
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There is no getting away from the fact that it has been a tough campaign for Valencia, with 22 points from 23 matches leaving them in 18th spot in the table, one point behind 17th-placed Leganes on the same number of games.
Los Che have posted three wins from their last four league matches, though, with all of those successes coming at home, including back-to-back victories over Celta Vigo and Leganes.
Carlos Corberan's side have only lost one of their last five in the league, but that was a heavy 7-1 reverse at Barcelona, and their away form is a concern, having failed to post a single victory on their travels during the 2024-25 campaign.
Valencia have not actually been victorious away from home in La Liga since April, while Villarreal have only lost two of their 11 home league games this term, which is an indication of the size of the away team's task.
Los Che have not been relegated from Spain's top flight since the 1985-86 campaign, so there is plenty on the line this season, and it would be a huge blow for the six-time La Liga champions if they dropped out of the top division.
Team News
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Villarreal will again be without the services of Alfonso Pedraza and Ilias Akhomach due to long-term injuries, while Arnaut Danjuma and Gerard Moreno are major doubts for the Yellow Submarine this weekend.
Perez has been in excellent goalscoring form for Villarreal this season, finding the back of the net on 10 occasions in 16 appearances in Spain's top flight, and the Spain international will again lead the line.
There is likely to be a change in the middle of the defence on Saturday, though, with Logan Costa expected to replace Willy Kambwala.
As for Valencia, Thierry Correia is a long-term absentee with a serious knee injury, while Dimitri Foulquier is a doubt due to a muscular issue.
Head coach Corberan has no fresh fitness concerns, though, and it is likely that he will name the same XI for this match, with Hugo Duro again leading the line, while Andre Almeida should feature in a wide area.
Fit-again Mouctar Diakhaby is again in line for a spot in the middle of the defence on Saturday, meaning that the highly-rated Cristhian Mosquera could feature at right-back for the six-time Spanish champions.
Villarreal possible starting lineup:
Conde; Femenia, Foyth, Costa, S Cardona; Pino, Comesana, Gueye, Baena; Perez, Barry
Valencia possible starting lineup:
Mamardashvili; Mosquera, Tarrega, Diakhaby, Gaya; Guerra, Barrenechea; Rioja, D Lopez, Almeida; Duro
We say: Villarreal 2-1 Valencia
Valencia's recent form has been impressive, but their struggles on the road are a concern, and we are finding it very difficult to back them to pick up a positive result here. However, it should be a close match in terms of the scoreline, with Villarreal potentially only just shading it.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
