Villarreal vs Real Madrid score, result: La Liga champions lose 2-1 against Gerard Moreno and Yellow Submarine

Simon Borg

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Villarreal vs Real Madrid score, result: La Liga champions lose 2-1 against Gerard Moreno and Yellow Submarine image

Real Madrid suffered a blow in their bid to repeat as La Liga champions after falling 2-1 at Villarreal in an entertaining, action-packed match that was also tinged in controversy. The defending champions missed a chance to go top of the La Liga table with a win or draw.

Villarreal were not intimidated in front of a full house at their renovated El Madrigal home, and the Yellow Submarine attacked Real Madrid from the start, coming away with a win that will give them hope of making a real push for a top-four finish and a UEFA Champions League berth. It's the sixth straight victory in all competitions for Villarreal under new coach Quique Setien.

Real Madrid, who started the match without a Spanish player for the first time in their competitive history, are guaranteed to remain in second place in the La Liga standings as they get set to watch leaders Barcelona take the field against Atletico Madrid on Sunday. Barcelona will have the chance to take a three-point lead atop the table if they can beat Real's rivals Atletico.

Villarreal forward Gerard Moreno scored a goal and registered an assist as his team deservedly came away with all three points. Real Madrid never got into an attacking rhythm and that was also credit to excellent defensive play from Villarreal.

Referee Cesar Soto Grado called two penalties in a span of four minutes in the second half, both of which were debatable. The first for Real Madrid looked like a light touch from Juan Foyth that barely impacted the flight of the ball. The second was called against Real Madrid's David Alaba, whose arm was being used to prevent him from falling and the ball struck his hand. Both players were punished, and both penalties were converted.

"If it were up to me and the way I see football, it wouldn't be a penalty in either case," Carlo Ancelotti said postgame. "But we have to get used to it because those are the rules."

Real Madrid will look to put the loss behind them as they get set to play in the Spanish Supercopa beginning with Wednesday's semifinal against Valencia. Villarreal, who will again host Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey Round of 16 later in January, will travel to face Celta Vigo in La Liga on Friday.

MORE: Updated La Liga standings | La Liga top scorers

Villarreal vs Real Madrid final score

  1H 2H Final
Villarreal 0 2 2
Real Madrid 0 1 1

Goals:
VIL — Yeremy Pino (Gerard Moreno) — 47th min.
RMA — Karim Benzema (penalty) — 60th min.
VIL — Gerard Moreno (penalty) — 63rd min.

Lineups:

Villarreal lineup (4-3-3, right to left): 1-Reina (GK) — 8-Foyth, 3-Albiol, 4-Pau, 18-A. Moreno (24-Pedraza, 73') — 19-Coquelin (14-Trigueros, 88'), 10-Parejo, 16-Baena — 11-Chukwueze, 7-G. Moreno (9-Danjuma, 88'), 21-Yeremy (20-Morales, 80')

Real Madrid (4-3-3, right to left): 1-Courtois (GK) — 3-Militao, 22-Rudiger, 4-Alaba, 23-Mendy (17-Vazquez, 64') — 10-Modric (12-Camavinga, 70'), 18-Tchouameni (21-Rodrygo, 64'), 8-Kroos —15-Valverde (11-Asensio 82'), 9-Benzema, 20-Vinicius Jr

Villarreal vs Real Madrid live updates, highlights from La Liga

Final: Villarreal 2, Real Madrid 1

Final: It was a deserved win for Villarreal, and Real Madrid's superstars couldn't pull off the big play to get Los Merengues back into the match and make up for a lack of ideas and coherent play.

Villarreal were inspired and they had several players who put in strong performances from goalkeeper Pepe Reina, center-back Raul Albiol, right-back Juan Foyth, midfielder Alex Baena, and winger Yeremy Pino. But the star of the day was Gerard Moreno who picked apart Real Madrid and showed why he should continue to be a big part of Spain's national team now that he's healthy again.

Real Madrid could never get a grip on the match in midfield with the Modric-Tchouameni-Kroos trio outplayed by their counterparts, while Vinicius Jr and Karim Benzema could not get the better of their opponents. Federico Valverde was quiet, and the decision to play regular center-back Eder Militao at right-back didn't help the team function any better.

97th min.: Chance Villarreal! Arnaut Danjuma nearly scores on an empty net after Thibaut Courtois left his box for a final Real Madrid corner kick.

90th min.: Seven minutes of stoppage time.

90th min.: Chance Villarreal! Chukwueze with the shot that Thibaut Courtois deflects for a corner. Nothing comes of it.

88th min.: SUBS Villarreal. Manu Trigueros and Arnaut Danjuma come on for Coquelin and Gerard Moreno respectively.

82nd min.: SUB Real Madrid. After Villarreal couldn't take advantage of a transition, Real Madrid bring on Marco Asensio for Fede Valverde.

80th min.: SUB Villarreal. It's Jose Luis Morales coming on for Yeremy Pino.

78th min.: Chance Real Madrid! Rodrygo takes a ball out of the air and can't redirect the ball on goal as it flies across the goal mouth.

75th min.: Yellow card for Villarreal's Raul Albiol. He blocks a Vinicius Jr run and goes into the official's book.

73rd min.: SUB Villarreal. Alfonso Pedraza in for Alberto Moreno at left-back. Moments later Real Madrid can't convert on a dangerous free kick just outside the box.

70th min.: SUB Real Madrid. Eduardo Camavinga comes on for Luka Modric, who receives a brief applause from the Villarreal crowd.

64th min.: SUBS Real Madrid. Rodrygo and Lucas Vazquez come in for Aurelien Tchouameni and Ferland Mendy. Alaba is now the left-back, Eder Militao moves to center-back, and Lucas Vazquez takes over at right-back. Rodrygo is now on the right wing with Federico Valverde moving into central midfield.

63rd min.: Goal Villarreal! Gerard Moreno slots it home. Villarreal are back on top.

61st min.: Penalty for Villarreal! David Alaba on the ground blocks a pass with his hand. It's a no-brainer.

59th min.: Penalty Real Madrid! The referee sees a slight contact with the ball by Juan Foyth on the ball over the top to Vinicius. And Karim Benzema steps up to score.

56th min.: Chance Real Madrid! The ball was sitting there for a wide-open Karim Benzema to shoot on goal, but the ball is blocked off the line by Villarreal. Vinicius is certain there's a hand ball and the referee is checking it.

53rd min.: Chance Villarreal! It's Samuel Chukwueze who misfires after a brief reaction by Real Madrid following the goal.

47th min.: Goal Villarreal! Real Madrid left-back Ferland Mendy turns the ball over and Gerard Moreno finds Yeremy Pino on the left side and he powers it home. Here's the turnover and all the space Villarreal had to exploit:

Quique Setien is pumped:

46th min.: We're back underway. No subs for either side.

Halftime: Villarreal 0, Real Madrid 0

Halftime: Villarreal deserve to be ahead based on the number of attacks created, and they hit the post after five minutes. The Quique Setien philosophy of committing numbers forward is working and it hasn't cost Villarreal (yet) on the other end thanks to sensational defending by Raul Albiol and a strong save from Pepe Reina.

But Real Madrid are hanging around and they look like they can score at any point. They almost did through Vinicius Jr. Federico Valverde has not made an impact in the attack, seemingly more preoccupied with covering for emergency right-back Eder Militao.

44th min.: Another fantastic attacking move by Villarreal! Yeremy Pino picks out Dani Parejo at the top of the box, but his shot is right at Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois.

40th min.: Chance Real Madrid! Pepe Reina with the big stop on Vinicius Jr after nice combination play from the visitors.

34th min.: Ex-Real Madrid man Raul Albiol is having a sensational match for Villarreal at center-back. Here he stops Karim Benzema and the home crowd gives him a loud ovation.

30th min.: It's all Villarreal to this point. They're throwing numbers forward, Real Madrid are pinned in their own half and Alex Baena has another look at goal. Villarreal is going to regret not putting one of these away.

23rd min.: Villarreal chance! Yeremy Pino is put through by Gerard Moreno, but Real Madrid 'keeper Thibaut Courtois comes off his line to thwart the chance.

In the meantime, there is more and more context coming out on the lack of Spanish players in the Real Madrid lineup:

21st min.: Chance Real Madrid! Eder Militao was in the Villarreal box, but he was caught in between crossing and shooting and Yeremy Pino pokes it away.

16th min.: Yellow card to Villarreal center-back Pau Torres for a high arm on Eder Militao. Nothing comes of the Real Madrid free kick.

10th min.: What a play by Luka Modric! He sends a perfect pass through a defender's legs and into the Villarreal box. It leads to a ball across the goal mouth, but no one's there to put it home for Real Madrid.

5th min.: Another chance for Villarreal! This time it's a cross from Alberto Moreno on the left and a spinning backheel flick by Francis Coquelin and the ball nips the base of the far right post.

1st min.: Chance Villarreal! It's Alex Baena with a shot that goes over the bar. ... On another note, it's Militao at right-back for Real Madrid.

1st min.: We're off. Real Madrid in white. Villarreal in yellow. It's the visitors kicking off.

5 mins from kickoff: The teams are in the tunnel and ready to walk out onto the pitch.

15 mins from kickoff: Scenes from the warmups. The sun's out in Villarreal.

25 mins from kickoff: According to someone on the ground, the Estadio La Ceramica, which was under renovations during the first three months of the season, is not yet complete.

65 mins from kickoff: Villarreal's lineup is out and there are no huge surprises except for the absence of Nicolas Jackson and Etienne Capoue due to what is being reported as muscle issues.

75 mins from kickoff: The arrival of both team buses at the Estadio de la Ceramica.

80 mins from kickoff: You'll have noticed that Real Madrid are playing without a single Spanish player on the pitch to start the match. It's becoming a talking point in the lead-up to kickoff. Opta adds the detail that it's the first time in the 21st century.

100 mins from kickoff: It's yellow everywhere at La Ceramica.

95 mins from kickoff: According to the math by Relevo reporter Jorge Picon, Real Madrid has the worst winning percentage away at Villarreal than at any other road venue in the last 20 years.

105 mins from kickoff: The Copa del Rey Round of 16 draw was held this morning and look at the matchup that popped up. It's Villarreal vs. Real Madrid at La Ceramica once again.

115 mins from kickoff: Real Madrid announce their starting lineup well in advance of kickoff.

150 mins from kickoff: Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti noted that he's expecting an open match based on how Villarreal have been looking in recent weeks under new boss Quique Setien. 

180 mins from kickoff: Marca's front cover highlights the fact that the last five Real Madrid trips to face Villarreal have ended in a draw (noted with an 'X' in Europe).

MORE: Latest Real Madrid transfer news

Villarreal vs Real Madrid lineups

Alex Baena joins the midfield trio ahead of Etienne Capoue, who's not even in the squad due to a muscle issue, which is also the case for Nicolas Jackson. So Arnaut Danjuma will be the alternative to now-healthy starting center-forward Gerard Moreno. Giovani Lo Celso is still injured, while goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli was transferred to Dutch club Ajax earlier this week.

Villarreal starting lineup (4-3-3, right to left): 1-Pepe Reina (GK) — 8-Juan Foyth, 3-Raul Albiol, 4-Pau Torres, 18-Alberto Moreno — 19-Francis Coquelin, 10-Dani Parejo, 16-Alex Baena — 11-Samuel Chukwueze, 7-Gerard Moreno, 21-Yeremy Pino

Villarreal subs (10): 35-Filip Jorgensen (GK), 23-Aissa Mandi, 24-Alfonso Pedraza, 2-Kiko Femenia, 5-Jorge Cuenca, 12-Johan Mojica, 14-Manu Trigueros, 22-Jose Luis Morales, 20-Manu Morlanes, 9-Arnaut Danjuma

Real Madrid are without three injured players who are not yet fit: forward Mariano Diaz, and right-backs Dani Carvajal and Alvaro Odriozola. Instead of lining up Lucas Vazquez at right-back again after he went a full 90 minutes in the 1-0 midweek Copa del Rey victory, it will be Brazilian Eder Militao who has played there already earlier this year and for Brazil. 

Real Madrid starting lineup (4-3-3, right to left): 1-Thibaut Courtois (GK) — 3-Eder Militao, 22-Antonio Rudiger, 4-David Alaba, 23-Ferland Mendy — 10-Luka Modric, 18-Aurelien Tchouameni, 8-Toni Kroos —15-Federico Valverde, 9-Karim Benzema, 20-Vinicius Jr

Real Madrid subs (10): 13-Andriy Lunin (GK), 26-Luis Lopez (GK), 17-Lucas Vazquez, 6-Nacho Fernandez, 5-Jesus Vallejo, 19-Dani Ceballos, 12-Eduardo Camavinga, 7-Eden Hazard, 11-Marco Asensio, 21-Rodrygo

MORE: Real Madrid squad list and jersey numbers for 2022/23

Watch Villarreal vs Real Madrid live stream, TV

Villarreal's Estadio de la Ceramica will be sold out for the La Liga showdown against defending Spanish and European champions Real Madrid.

The club made a victorious return to its stadium on Dec. 31 after playing home games in nearby Valencia for the first three months of the 2022/23 season while La Ceramica was being renovated.

  Date Time TV Channel Streaming
Australia Sun, Jan. 8 02:15 AET  — Optus Sport
Canada Sat, Jan. 7 10:15 ET TSN2 TSN GO, TSN site/app
Hong Kong Sat, Jan. 7 23:15 HKT Now Sports 2 Now Player, M Plus site/app
India Sat, Jan. 7 20:45 IST Sports18 Voot Select, Sports18
Malaysia Sat, Jan. 7 23:15 MYT beIN Sports beIN Sports Connect, sooka
New Zealand Sun, Jan. 8 04:15 NZST — beIN Sports Connect
Singapore Sat, Jan. 7 23:15 SST beIN Sports beIN Sports Connect,
Star Hub Sports+
UK Sat, Jan. 7 15:15 BST  — LaLigaTV, Viaplay UK
USA Sat, Jan. 7 10:15 ET  ESPN Deportes fuboTV, ESPN+

UK: The match will be available on Viaplay (formerly Premier Sports) and on LaLigaTV.

USA: The Villarreal vs. Real Madrid match will be televised on ESPN Deportes which is streamed on fuboTV. It will also be streamed in English and Spanish on ESPN+.

Canada: TSN holds TV and streaming rights for La Liga in Canada. The Villarreal vs. Real Madrid match will be televised on TSN2 and streaming on TSN's online platforms. 

Australia: Fans in Australia can stream all La Liga matches live and on demand on Optus Sport. 

Simon Borg

Simon Borg Photo

Simon Borg is a senior editor at The Sporting News who has covered football/soccer for over a decade. A supporter of Italian club Parma Calcio from his years growing up in Europe, he was previously a long-time member of Major League Soccer's digital media team, as a multimedia content producer, on-air personality, and Editor-in-Chief. Based in New York City, Borg is multilingual and has covered the domestic and global scene for TSN since 2021.