Villarreal CF (Spain)

Villareal CF

Ground: Estadio de la Cerámica

Capacity: 23,008

Club Founded: 1923

League: La Liga (current level)

Few clubs in European football have risen as dramatically as Villarreal CF, a small-town side that transformed itself from regional football into Champions League semi-finalists.

Estadio de la Cerámica

Early Years

The Villareal team started off playing in white shirts and black shorts in their El Madrigal home, playing their first ever game against local rivals CD Castellón. The club joined the Spanish pyramid at the regional level from the start of the 1929-30 season after previously playing friendly matches.

They would go on to win the Comunitat Valenciana before the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, Football recommenced in 1939 with Villareal being placed in the second tier of the regional leagues.

Steady Progress

In 1942, the team adopted their yellow shirts, while the club formation was changed a couple of times. Villareal won promotion nine years later, with the current Villarreal CF coming into being in 1954. This led to the team progressing to the third-tier Tercera Liga, before returning to regional status a few years later.

The beginning of the 1970s saw ‘El Submarino Amarillo’, the Yellow Submarine, win promotion to the second tier Segunda División for the first time, with their spell there lasting two seasons. They dropped down a further level halfway through the decade before regaining their status.

Third-tier football was secured through promotion to Segunda Liga B in 1986-87, from where, after a brief blip, the team continued the impetus as they reached the second level Segunda Liga a year into the 1990's.

Promotion to La Liga

After an initial struggle, Villareal reached the play-offs in 1997-98, defeating SD Compostela on away goals as the club reached the top-tier La Liga for the first time. The gradual development of El Madrigal continued, while José Antonio Irulegui coached the team. 

The team was relegated, despite the goals of Gică Craioveanu and Manolo Alfaro. Paquito took over as coach and led his charges back to La Liga at the turn of the millennium, where the team consolidated under the stewardship of Víctor Muñoz. Success in the Intertoto Cup saw Villareal qualify for the UEFA Cup.

UEFA Competition Football

Trabzonspor, Torpedo Moscow, Beşiktaş, AS Roma, and Celtic were all defeated as Villareal progressed to the semi-final, where they were defeated 1-0 on aggregate by local rivals Valencia CF. Juan Román Riquelme and Sonny Anderson weighed in with goals through the run under coach Benito Floro, before the arrival of new coach Manuel Pellegrini in 2004.

The Pellegrini Era

Villareal finished in a best-ever third place in La Liga, with Diego Forlán topping the scoring chart. The Yellow Submarine qualified for the following season’s Champions League, going all the way to the semi-final before being defeated by Arsenal. 

Villareal went on to finish as La Liga runners-up in 2007-08, as Marcos Senna and Robert Pirès created chances from midfield for Nihat Kahveci and Joseba Llorente. Pellegrini departed, and Ernesto Valverde and then Juan Carlos Garrido had spells as head coach.

Heartbreak and Celebration

Giuseppe Rossi and Santi Cazorla became fans' favourites, with Villareal reaching the Europa League semi-finals, going out to eventual winners, FC Porto. The 2011-12 season saw coaches come and go, as the team was relegated to Segunda División. Manuel Preciado, the new man put in charge of the team, died of a heart attack days after his appointment.

Julio Velázquez, his replacement, lasted until the winter break before Marcelino was appointed as coach. Villareal won promotion back to La Liga, despite the departure of star players Borja Valero, Diego López, Rossi and Nilmar. 

The goalkeeping of Juan Carlos went a long way to restoring top-flight status before Villareal finished the 2015-16 campaign in fourth place. Bruno Soriano captained the team as Roberto Soldado scored the goals, while Alphonse Areola starred in goal. 

Champions and Europa League football followed, with the team reaching the semi-finals of the latter, where Villareal lost to Liverpool. Cédric Bakambu and Denis Suárez were the stars of the show before the arrival of Fran Escribá as coach.

Europa League Glory

Javier Calleja was appointed as coach at the renamed and renovated Estadio de la Cerámica in September 2017, as Pablo Fornals pulled the creative strings on the pitch. Villareal progressed to the quarter-finals of the Europa League, where Valencia again ended the run, but it wouldn't be long before the club would lift the trophy.

The likes of Arsenal, Dinamo Zagreb, and Dinamo Kyiv were beaten in 2020-21 along the way to reach the final in Stadion Gdańsk, where Manchester United were beaten 11-10 on penalties. Gerard scored the goal in normal time, while Gerónimo Rulli became the hero in goal.

The renovated Estadio de la Cerámica

Unai Emery was appointed as head coach, taking his team to the Champions League semifinal in 2021-22 after wins against Juventus and Bayern München before Liverpool ended the dreams of glory. The manager headed off to Aston Villa to be replaced by Quique Setién.

The major renovation of Estadio de la Cerámica was completed in 2022, at a time when Nicolas Jackson was scoring the goals. Pacheta became manager in September 2023, lasting just a few months before the return of Marcelino, as Ayoze Pérez top-scored.

My visit

Villarreal CF 2 CD Leganés 1 - aggregate 2-2; Leganés win on away goals 

Copa Del Rey Round of 16 - Wednesday 10th January 2018 

👨‍👨‍👧‍👧 12,122 🎟️ €20

Train to Villareal

The TV companies had been very kind to me with their coverage of Copa Del Rey second-leg games, well after I’d booked my flights for a two-night stay in Valencia. I knew that Levante, Valencia and Villarreal were all at home, but it was purely by chance that I could get to two games.

My train journey north was full of my usual adventure and mishap, meaning I only got to see the home of CF Nules. Nevertheless, I was in good form as I got off the train ready to go and buy a ticket before relaxing with a beer or three.

Pre-Match Local Bars

I’d researched that the club shop would be open in the town centre, but the store on Plaça Major remained shut. Perhaps all hands were needed up at Estadio de la Ceramica, as El Madrigal had been renamed. The walk from the main square to the stadium took me through lots of narrow lanes in the neat and tidy town before I walked up Carrer Ermita.

This took me to a large open area outside the stadium. I’d got my eye on returning to town to try out Beer-attack, which looked tempting, with the promise of several beers on tap. However, it was at least ten minutes away. I wanted to be inside the ground a little earlier, as experience told me that navigation inside Spanish venues wasn’t the easiest.

Instead, I crossed the road once I’d obtained my match ticket for €20. Something was appealing about Bar Deportivo, despite there being quite a good choice of other venues, which looked to be slightly more upmarket. I immediately felt at home, as old boys played cards on a Formica-topped table with a green baize cloth. 

There was a real down-to-earth but friendly feel to the place. I sat at the bar and ordered a pint of Amstel Ora, which was a dark golden beer. Within minutes, the glass collector started to remove the seats at the bar in advance of the growing crowd. I was using my principle that smiling went a long way if there was a language barrier. I was soon making friends.

There was a free table, so I went to sit down. Two older fans soon arrived. I think they asked if the other seats were free. Again, I smiled and made gestures that they were welcome to join me. They soon established that I was not a local. Between us, we established that I was there for the match, I’d been to watch Valencia the previous evening, and I thought that Villarreal were about to win 2-0. 

I wasn’t quite ready to take in the quick-fire Castellon being uttered my way, mind! My friend, the glass collector, was also doing table service. When he saw that I was nearly ready for a refill, he pointed, I nodded, and a beer was promptly delivered. I gave him a small tip on top of the €2.50 charge. I didn’t have to wait when I next needed service.

Estadio de la Cerámica

I’d left it as late as I could before I followed the crowds along Carrer Blasco Ibáñez behind the Main Stand. Several shops were selling beer and cheap snacks. I opted for a large bag of crisps for just €1 before going in. Entrance to my stand was under some buildings, with programmes free to take from a rack. 

I was in Fondo Norte, a large bank of open seating, with a covered section above the corporate facilities at the back to house visiting fans behind a Perspex screen. The opposite end was similar to where I was, with the main stand down the side having a substantial roof, while opposite, the cover was limited.

The Match

As with my match at Valencia the previous evening, I waited to see which seats were vacant before taking up the best position. I couldn’t complain with any view on offer as I settled down to what promised to be an intriguing tie, as the home side looked to make up a one-goal deficit from the first leg. 

The game quickly took on the look of a defence against attack training session, as the side from Madrid was determined to progress to the last eight of the competition for the first time. Carlos Bacca, on loan from Milan, came close when heading a free kick over the bar in the early stages. 

The same player was frustrated as visiting keeper Nereo Champagne saved his low curling effort. The custodian made an excellent stop from Pablo Fornals, who really should have done better from ten yards. Leganés were rewarded for their resolute defending on the half-hour mark when a pass found Nabil El Zhar just inside the Villarreal half. 

He ran at the heart of the defence before dinking a delightful chip over Mariano Barbosa, which dipped under the bar. The visiting players were naturally delighted. The away goal meant that the hosts would have to score three times to go through. 

Just two minutes later, Samu Castillejo had a good chance to equalise when put through, but Champagne saved once again. The keeper pulled off another top stop from a fierce Jaume Costa drive as the home support became even more exasperated. Their frustration was beginning to become apparent in their team as the half came to a close.

During the interval, I went for a wander to get some different angles for photos and to get the blood flowing. It had been a pleasant day, but the temperatures had now dropped to around 5°. I went further back for the second half, just in front of the corporate area. Two minutes after the break, El Submarino Amarillo were back in the game. 

Suddenly, I felt like I’d been slapped from behind. I looked around to see what was going on. The ladies in the corporate area were in charge of pumping air into the blow-up dancing figures that are seen at some events. They blew around, and one had found the back of my head! Champagne continued to pull off some top stops. 

He and his team showed off some top-class time-wasting skills and acting worthy of an award. It’s fair to say it wasn’t going down well, especially as Enes Ünal had a goal chalked off for offside. Half chances continued to arrive, but Villarreal were denied by a mixture of poor finishing, brave defending and excellent goalkeeping. 

A Dramatic Ending

Leganés missed a great opportunity to put the game to bed on a breakaway, but the finish was woeful. With just two minutes remaining, home substitute Denis Cheryshev fired in from a low pull-back to set up a grandstand finish. The board showed that there would be four additional minutes. 

However, it wasn’t to be for the locals despite a frantic finale, including a foray for late set pieces from goalkeeper Barbosa. The home side received a decent ovation from their fans. I applauded both teams. I really enjoyed the match. If only Villarreal had scored ten minutes earlier. 

Back to Valencia

The timings meant that I had just enough time to return to Bar Deportivo, where the welcome was as warm as before, and some vocal youths were settling down to watch the Real Madrid against Numancia game.

My train back to Valencia took around an hour. I’d considered going for some drinks, but I decided to quit while ahead and grab some supper and walk back to my hotel for a decent night's sleep before heading to the airport the following morning.