Gonçalo Guedes has scored a goal for Valencia! Assist by D. Cheryshev.
Cheryshev has been a menace since he came on. What were Villarreal doing leaving him in that amount of space?
GOAL! 3-1 VALENCIA! Valencia have sucker-punched Villarreal here with another fast break. Cheryshev curls a fantastic cross to Guedes whose shot into the turf bounces fortuitously over the onrushing Fernandez into the net.
FULL TIME: VILLARREAL 1-3 VALENCIA
90' +1
That was a wonderful ball by Gaya who had to work to get on the end of the pass. There will be three added minutes.
90'
D. Wass has scored a goal for Valencia! Assist by José Gayà.
GOAL! VALENCIA WIN IT! Valencia probe as Villarreal drop into their own third. The ball's worked to Gaya who whips across a fantastic low cross in acres of space. Rodrigo can't reach it but Wass can, smashing it high into the net first time. 2-1!
89'
Pedraza hashes a routine clearance near his own box but Cazorla's silky touch-and-go soon tidies things up. Villarreal get upfield and Moreno flicks the ball to Bacca who can only run the ball out of play.
86'
Pedraza gets forward from left-back and lumps a rogue cross vaguely in Moreno's direction. It's far too overpowered. Villarreal look stumped.
85'
Cheryshev takes a high cross down at the far post and tests Fernandez with a low near-post drive, but the Russian is judged to have handled the ball.
84'
Xavi Quintillà gets yellow.
Quintilla, who's moved to right-back, is booked for wrapping his arms all over Cheryshev.
83'
Valencia's counter-attacking threat is growing. Rodrigo leaves a ball for Wass powering through the middle. The Dane drags his shot wide.
80'
Alfonso Pedraza enters the game and replaces Mario Gaspar.
Villarreal use their final change to make one last push. Gaspar off. Pedraza comes on.
79'
Gabriel dives into the back of Moreno to challenge a header and comes off worse. Moreno just rubs his head - he's won the free-kick.
Minute
Description
78'
Valencia are seeing slightly more of the ball but their ambitions are still limited. This really is Villarreal's to win.
75'
Cheryshev and Guedes combine well to set Guedes free down the left. Unfortunately the Portuguese winger can't keep the ball in by the goalline.
73'
Villarreal decide to play a little more patiently. Quintilla has yet another delivery headed away. Parejo intercepts a through-ball and Valencia are away through Cheryshev. The Russian passes back to Guedes whose shot is way over.
72'
Manu Morlanes enters the game and replaces S. Cáseres.
Villarreal change tack. Caseres off. Morlanes on.
71'
Valencia continue to sit deep, waiting for Villarreal to come onto them. It's a familiar pattern - a blocked Quintilla cross, a wayward Cazorla shot. More ideas needed by Villarreal.
69'
D. Cheryshev enters the game and replaces K. Gameiro.
Valencia make their final change. Gameiro goes off and is replaced by Cheryshev.
68'
Villarreal really want the first-leg win as we enter the final quarter of the game. Moreno receives the ball with his back to goal, turns and shoots but Garay stays with him and manages to block.
67'
C. Bacca enters the game and replaces Iborra.
Chukwueze cuts inside from the right, eluding both Gaya and Gabriel, and fires a low left-footed shot towards Neto. It's a routine save.
Villarreal decide to chase the game. Iborra off. Bacca on.
66'
Villarreal are back on the ball now. Caceres punts a ball towards Quintilla and it's headed away. The yellow wave comes straight back into Valencia's half.
64'
Guedes cuts inside near the halfway line and curls a beautiful right-footed through-ball towards Rodrigo who's almost onto it. Ruiz passes back to Fernandez, who clears.
62'
Álvaro González gets yellow.
Coquelin enters the fray and immediately has a shot blocked. Gonzalez sees yellow for bringing down Gameiro.
61'
F. Coquelin enters the game and replaces Ferran Torres.
Valencia make another change. They're clearly rattled by this. Torres is replaced by Coquelin, another ex-Arsenal man.
58'
C. Piccini enters the game and replaces F. Roncaglia.
Marcelino decides a change is needed. Piccini replaces Roncaglia for Valencia.
54'
Gonzalez takes a knock after Ruiz slides in to intercept a Valencia through-ball and crashes into his teammate. Thankfully the defender is OK.
52'
Gonzalez angles forward a long ball that Iborra takes down nicely and lays off wide. Quintilla's cross is blocked. Cazorla looks up for Moreno at the far post but Moreno can't keep it in.
50'
Villarreal resume their first half dominance. Rodrigo picks up the ball wide right for Valencia but Cazorla nips in to concede the throw.
Rodrigo takes a tumble as he powers towards Villarreal's box. No foul. Valencia boss Marcelino throws his hands up in exasperation.
48'
Cazorla is great to watch. The veteran carries the ball without a care in the world near his own box and lays the ball off out wide.
46'
The two sides are back out and Valencia get the second half going! Will either side claim a first-leg advantage?
Wass dribbles through the centre after some sloppy Villarreal passing. The Dane has a pop but it's always heading wide.
45' +1
HALF TIME: VILLARREAL 1-1 VALENCIA
45'
Valencia gradually creep upfield but it leads to nothing. Neto finds himself under pressure from Moreno to clear a pass back and just about does so.
43'
Garay goes down after backing into his teammate Roncaglia and the referee somehow awards Valencia the free-kick. What nonsense.
40'
This game is threatening to boil over at the moment. Now Ruiz commits a foul on Wass. It's been a great start to the tie.
39'
José Gayà gets yellow.
Gaya steams into the back of Chukwueze, clearing the ball and the winger with him. Villarreal free-kick. Gaya's booked. The home crowd are in lively mood now, as you'd expect.
38'
Gara steams into the back of Chukwueze, clearing the ball and the winger with him. Villarreal free-kick. The home crowd are in lively mood now, as you'd expect.
37'
Villarreal deserve that - they have dominated this game positionally, even if it came more from Garay's mistake than their own skill.
36'
Penalty goal scored by Santi Cazorla for Villarreal!
GOAL! VILLARREAL EQUALISE! Cazorla steps up and makes no mistake, swerving the ball past Neto. 1-1!
34'
Wass sneaks past Moreno deep in Valencia's midfield and attracts the foul. Valencia waste the free-kick and Fornals tries to counter but can't keep the ball in play.
30'
Valencia look content to let Villarreal have the ball for the most part. After all, they're not the ones who have to score.
Cazorla is fouled by Wass and takes the free-kick quickly. Villarreal get forward and Fornals wins a free-kick in a central position when Garay catches him with a trailing leg.
28'
Santi Cazorla gets yellow.
Cazorla is booked for cynically bringing down Gaya as the Valencia left-back tries to initiate a counter-attack. A smart challenge but he's rightly punished for it.
26'
Fornals has a shot from outside the box blocked, then Iborra heads over from Quintilla's cross. Villarreal are pressing the issue.
25'
Fernandez boldly - rashly? - steams out of his goal to deal with a loose ball close to the halfway line. His boss won't want him doing that too often.
24'
Villarreal pop the ball around, passing it from left to right to left again. It's lovely stuff that ends badly when Cazorla's layoff for Quintilla rolls harmlessly out of play.
22'
Garay heads over from the corner. Valencia look the better team but Villarreal look game enough to get back into this.
18'
Villarreal's home support aren't happy with how long Neto takes over the goal-kick. They'll be on the keeper's back all night now.
16'
Quintilla gets down the left and finds Fornals with a neat ball inside. Fornals crosses high for Moreno who just can't reach the header! Chukwueze picks up the pieces and supplies Cazorla whose shot is over.
14'
Gameiro blazes over as he gets a sight of goal down the left hand channel from Rodrigo's pass. The Frenchman is looking lively in these initial stages.
12'
It's another corner for Villarreal, conceded by Torres. Again the home side can't capitalise. Not the start they would have wanted.
10'
Villarreal get a corner and take it short. Caseres has a shot blocked from the edge of the box. Ruiz tries a through-ball for Chukwueze but the winger is offside.
8'
Villarreal are already having to chase the game. Quintilla gets down the left and whips in a cross for Chukwueze at the far post but the Nigerian can't reach it.
7'
GOAL! 1-0 VALENCIA! Guedes blasts the ball in the net after Fernandez saves Parejo's initial drive low to his right. Valencia already have a crucial away goal.
6'
Penalty saved by Andrés Fernández!
Gonçalo Guedes has scored a goal for Valencia!
Parejo steps up to take it... And has his low drive saved by Fernandez!
That was a strong save from Fernandez, but...
4'
Gaspar knocks the ball down the line for Moreno to chase but Gabriel heads it clear. Oh wait, hang on...
2'
Villarreal caress the ball around early on. Valencia win a free-kick when former Arsenal man Cazorla is fouled by Moreno.
1'
Villarreal get this all-Spanish quarter-final tie underway!
Hello and welcome to our live text commentary of this UEFA Europa League quarter-final first-leg tie between Villarreal and Valencia at Estadio de la Ceramica.
Same-country ties in European competition always have an extra edge about them, and it's no exception for these two sides. Valencia narrowly saw off Villarreal 1-0 over two legs in the 2003-04 semi-final of this competition's predecessor, the UEFA Cup, as Rafa Benitez's side went on to lift the trophy in Gothenburg.
VILLARREAL (4-2-3-1): Andres Fernandez; Mario Gaspar (c), Alvaro Gonzalez, Victor Ruiz, Xavier Quintilla; Santiago Caseres, Santi Cazorla; Samuel Chukwueze, Vicente Iborra, Pablo Fornals; Gerard Moreno.
VILLARREAL SUBS: Carlos Bacca, Manuel Morlanes, Sergio Asenjo, Raba, Ramiro Funes Mori, Alfonso Pedraza, Karl Toko Ekambi.
VALENCIA (4-4-2): Neto; Facundo Roncaglia, Ezequiel Garay, Gabriel, Jose Gaya; Ferran Torres, Daniel Parejo, Daniel Wass, Goncalo Guedes; Rodrigo Moreno, Kevin Gameiro.
VALENCIA SUBS: Francis Coquelin, Mouctar Diakhaby, Cristiano Piccini, Cristian Rivero, Denis Cheryshev, Lee Kang-In, Santi Mina.
The two sides enter the pitch - Villarreal in their iconic all-yellow, Valencia in all-white. It's reminiscent of a simpler, easier age.
Fifteen years on, the stakes are just as high. Valencia sit 6th in LaLiga with outside hopes of finishing in the top four, while Villarreal are desperately scrapping against relegation. Will Villarreal come to see their progress in this year's competition as a damaging distraction, or a source of salvation? Let's find out!
Valencia played that second half to perfection. They remained patient, waited for Villarreal to tire and pounced when the home side started to get anxious. That's why they'll be in Europe again next year and Villarreal are fighting relegation.
Valencia have one foot in the Europa League semi-finals. Villarreal now need to score at least three goals at the Mestella next week to progress. It doesn't look at all likely but they'll have to believe it's possible. That's all for now. Goodbye!
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