In Round 3 of La Liga, Celta de Vigo and Villarreal faced off at the Balaídos Stadium, ending in a 1-1 draw.
Villarreal took an early lead in the second half with a goal from Nicolas Pépé in the 52nd minute. However, Celta fought back to level the score just seconds after, with Borja Iglesias netting the equalizer at the 48th minute.
Celta dominated possession throughout the match, holding 66% compared to Villarreal’s 34%, but it was not enough to secure a win.
The standout player of the match was Borja Iglesias, who not only scored a crucial goal but also completed 9 successful passes. Nicolas Pépé also shone for Villarreal, scoring the opening goal, taking 2 shots on target, and achieving 8 accurate passes.
Celta’s manager, Claudio Giráldez, deployed a 3-6-1 formation with Ionut Radu in goal; Javier Rodríguez, Carlos Dominguez, and Manu Fernandez in defense; Javi Rueda, Hugo Sotelo, Miguel Román, Sergio Carreira, Iago Aspas, and Bryan Zaragoza in midfield; and Pablo Duran leading the attack.
On the other side, Marcelino García Toral’s Villarreal set up in a 4-4-2 formation, featuring Luiz Júnior as the goalkeeper; Álvaro Mouriño, Juan Foyth, Rafa Marín, and Sergi Cardona in defense; Tajon Buchanan, Pape Gueye, Santi Comesaña, and Alberto Moleiro in midfield; with Etta Eyong and Nicolas Pépé up front.
The match was officiated by Alejandro Quintero González.
Celta’s next league fixture will be at home against Girona, while Villarreal will travel to face Atlético de Madrid.
As a result of this draw, Celta reaches 3 points and holds the 14th position in the standings, while Villarreal remains at 7 points, sitting in second place within the league.
Substitutions for Celta
62’ 2T – Bryan Zaragoza off for Borja Iglesias and Pablo Duran off for Hugo Álvarez.
69’ 2T – Miguel Román off for Ilaix Moriba and Iago Aspas off for Williot Swedberg.
74’ 2T – Javier Rodríguez off for Óscar Mingueza.
Celta Yellow Card:
21’ 2T – Miguel Román (Unsporting behavior).
Substitutions for Villarreal
67’ 2T – Alberto Moleiro off for Thomas Partey.
76’ 2T – Etta Eyong off for Tani Oluwaseyi and Pape Gueye off for Dani Parejo.
77’ 2T – Tajon Buchanan off for Ilias Akhomach.
84’ 2T – Nicolas Pépé off for Renato Veiga.
Villarreal Yellow Card:
24’ 2T – Pape Gueye (Unsporting behavior).