The hosts edged past Rayo Vallecano 1-0 almost two weeks ago, while El Submarino secured a thrilling 3-2 success over Celta Vigo last time out.
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Two sides looking to secure back-to-back wins in the La Liga will be up against each other on Tuesday as Valencia play host to Villarreal in a L Liga fixture at Mestalla. The hosts edged past Rayo Vallecano 1-0 almost two weeks ago, while El Submarino secured a thrilling 3-2 success over Celta Vigo last time out. Los Che are currently occupying tenth spot in the Spanish top flight standings, having collected 23 points from 18 games, while the visitors are sitting three places behind Ruben Baraja’s side, separated by four points.
Un partit molt de la terreta 🍊#ValenciaVillarreal pic.twitter.com/DbNdqJKKgK
— Villarreal CF (@VillarrealCF) January 2, 2024
Valencia traveled to Rayo Vallecano on December 19 on the back of a come-from-behind 1-1 draw against reigning champions Barcelona thanks to Hugo Guillamon’s 70th-minute equaliser. Los Che secure all three points against Estadio de Vallecas thanks to Sergi Canos’ lone goal on the hour mark. Meanwhile, Baraja’s side finished the match with a man-less after Thierry Correia was sent off in the injury time. It was their sixth league-win of the season and result helped Valencia to climb to the top half of the table. Though consistency has been a problem for Los Che, their home-form has been impressive, winning four, drawing two and losing just two of their eight fixtures at Mestalla to collect 14 points.
Villarreal, on the other hand, raced to a 3-0 lead against Celta at El Madrigal on December 20 thanks to first-half effort from Alfonso Pedraza and Aissa Mandi, and Dani Parejo’s 48th-minute penalty-kick. The Sky Blues fought back to score two goals through Antastasios Douvikas and Jorgen Strand Larsen before the hour-mark, but the hosts held on to the slender lead and secured their fifth top flight victory of the campaign. Nevertheless, it has been a turbulent 2023/24 league campaign for El Submarino so far, with the team on their third permanent manager. Villarreal secured fifth-place finish in the La Liga Santander last term but as of now they are 12 points behind the European spots. Meanwhile, on a positive note, Villarreal have not lost to Los Che in their last three encounters, with the latest battle ending in a 1-1 draw at Mestalla last season.
Valencia probable starting lineup: Mamardashvili, Foulquier, Paulista, Mosquera, Vazquez, D Lopez, Guillamon, Pepelu, Canos, Duro, Amallah
Villarreal probable starting lineup: Jorgensen, Alti, Albiol, Mandi, Pedraza, Akhomach, Capoue, Parejo, A Moreno, Sorloth, Morales
Valencia
| Opponents | Score |
| Rayo Vallecano | 0-1 (W) |
| Barcelona | 1-1 (D) |
| Getafe | 1-0 (L) |
| Arosa SC | 0-1 (W) |
| Girona | 2-1 (L) |
Villarreal
| Opponents | Score |
| Celta Vigo | 3-2 (W) |
| Real Madrid | 4-1 (L) |
| Rennes | 2-3 (W) |
| Real Sociedad | 0-3 (L) |
| Maccabi Haifa | 0-0 (D) |
| Last 5 match-results | Score |
| Valencia draw Villarreal | 1-1 |
| Villarreal beat Valencia | 2-1 |
| Villarreal beat Valencia | 2-0 |
| Valencia beat Villarreal | 2-0 |
| Valencia beat Villarreal | 3-2 |
The La Liga fixture between Valencia and Villarreal will take place at Mestalla on Wednesday at 2:00 am IST.
| Valencia vs Villarreal | Key Details |
| Date | January 2 (Spain) |
| Venue | Mestalla |
| Kickoff time in Spain | 9:30 pm (Tuesday) |
| Kickoff time in India | 2:00 am (Wednesday) |
Football fans in India can live stream the game through Jio TV. Meanwhile, those in Spain can watch the match on Movistar + and M + LALIGA TV.
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