Villarreal do not ease off against Elche (2-1) | OneFootball

The Yellow Submarine defeat the Ilicitano side thanks to goals from Buchanan and Mouriño

Villarreal defeated Elche (2-1) at the Estadio de la Cerámica. The Yellow Submarine, who produced their best football in the first half, were able to contain Elche in a second half in which the visitors closed the gap and pushed for an equaliser. Buchanan and Mouriño’s goals, both scored in the final stretch of the first half, were enough to secure three points that keep Villarreal right in the middle of an exciting fight for third place with Atlético de Madrid.

To face Elche, Marcelino opted for a starting XI featuring Luiz Júnior; Mouriño, Pau Navarro, Marín, Cardona; Buchanan, Comesaña, Gueye, Moleiro; Mikautadze and Pepe. A fairly continuity‑driven line‑up with only two changes from the previous match. Buchanan and Marín came in for Ayoze — unavailable due to a physical issue — and Renato Veiga.

In the early stages, the match delivered exactly what it promised: end‑to‑end exchanges and plenty of action in both boxes. Before the 10‑minute mark, Villarreal had already produced a major threat through Buchanan, whose cross found no finisher, while Elche forced a dangerous deflection from Marín that Luiz Júnior had to save brilliantly.

Half an hour in, Mikautadze had the opener at his feet. The French‑Georgian striker showcased all his quality with a spectacular individual move. Cutting inside from the left, he feinted twice before unleashing a powerful shot that Dituro managed to push away with difficulty.

The warning signs were there — and Villarreal made them count. Just one minute later, it was Buchanan who struck from the opposite flank. After receiving a brilliant pass from Pape Gueye, the Canadian controlled, drove into the box, beat his defender with a cut inside and unleashed a rocket into the back of the net. Villarreal had their opener.

The 1-0 did not change the script: Elche kept pushing for possession and looked to swing balls into the box for their two forwards, Rafa Mir and Álvaro — two strong, physical strikers who made life difficult for the Villarreal defence. For the hosts, however, the advantage provided calm and control when breaking forward and exploiting spaces. With Mikautadze in superb form, Marcelino’s side enjoyed their attacking play.

These were Villarreal’s best minutes of the match, creating chance after chance. In the 40th minute, Pape Gueye had a huge opportunity when he arrived into the box to meet a cross from Moleiro, but Dituro denied him with a fantastic save. Yet, just as in the first goal, the breakthrough arrived moments later. In the 41st minute, Mouriño appeared in the box to score the 2-0. The Uruguayan, increasingly confident going forward, received a superb pass from Santi Comesaña and drilled the ball home — his first goal in the yellow shirt and in the top flight.

At the start of the second half, Villarreal tried to extend their lead. In the 55th minute, Gueye and Mikautadze came very close to scoring a third in a double chance: first a low effort from the Senegalese midfielder, then Mikautadze on the rebound, but the Elche defence cleared off the line at the last second.

In the 64th minute, Gerard returned to action after several games out. As tradition dictates, the No. 7 entered the pitch to a loud ovation from the home crowd.

Marcelino’s side were no longer as comfortable as in the first half. Elche pushed hard in search of a goal that would bring them back into the match — and they found it in the 80th minute. From a corner, André Silva headed in at the near post to make it 2-1.

In the final minutes, Elche threw everything forward, and Villarreal had to show resilience and discipline to secure three crucial points that keep them fully involved in the battle for third place.