Villarreal held to frustrating goalless draw by Elche at La Cerámica

Villarreal CF were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw by Elche at La Cerámica despite dominating the match. Iñigo Pérez's side created a host of clear chances but found Elche goalkeeper Dituro in inspired form, making several key saves to deny the hosts all three points.

The result from matchday nine leaves the Yellow Submarine tenth in the La Liga table with nine points. Their inability to convert chances prevented them from closing the gap to the European places, now sitting 18 points behind leaders Barcelona.

Head coach Iñigo Pérez made significant rotations to his starting lineup following the midweek Champions League victory over Napoli. Only Alberto Moleiro and Santi Comesaña retained their places from that match. The intent was clear from the off, with Moleiro breaking through one-on-one with Dituro inside the first minute after a pass from Comesaña, only for the keeper to save.

Before the quarter-hour mark, Villarreal thought they had taken the lead. A Tani Oluwaseyi effort was parried by Dituro and Moleiro tapped in the rebound, but the goal was ruled out for a marginal offside. The young midfielder came close again in first-half stoppage time, rounding Dituro only for an Elche defender to clear off the line.

The second half followed a similar pattern. In the 60th minute, referee García Verdura initially awarded Elche a penalty for a challenge by Moleiro on Revivo, but a VAR review prompted him to overturn the decision. Following this, Pérez introduced Pape Gueye and William Saliba to bolster the midfield, and later Georges Mikautadze in search of a winner.

The most poignant moment came with the home debut of academy graduate Nízar El Jmili, a local player who had made his first-team bow at the Bernabéu. Despite the fresh impetus, the goal wouldn't come. Saliba forced another fine save from Dituro from the edge of the box in the 77th minute, and Mikautadze just failed to connect with a dangerous left-wing cross five minutes later.

Alberto Moleiro, who had two of the best chances, took responsibility after the final whistle. "I had two very clear chances in the first half that I cannot miss," the midfielder said. "It wasn't the day. We have to keep working to put them in next time."

With this draw, Villarreal's form across all competitions reads three wins, one draw, and one loss from their last five outings. Their next fixture is a regional derby away to Valencia on Saturday, 24 October. The 19th-placed Che will be the next hurdle as Villarreal look to improve a league standing that still doesn't reflect their performances.

Background and full detail: Villarreal CF.es