Villarreal 1-0 Athletic Bilbao: Late Moleiro volley extends hosts’ positive run

Alberto Moleiro came off the bench to help Villarreal extend their winning run in LaLiga, netting the decisive goal in a 1-0 victory over Athletic Bilbao at the Estadio de la Ceramica.

The Yellow Submarine followed up recent wins over Osasuna and Sevilla with a clinical performance against Athletic, securing their third consecutive victory.

Santiago Mourino came close to testing Unai Simon with a powerful strike from range just three minutes in, but his shot rose over the bar.

Gorka Guruzeta then twice worked Villarreal goalkeeper Luiz Junior as Athletic dominated possession across the opening stages.

After a tepid first half, substitute Moleiro finally broke the deadlock in the 77th minute with a crisply-taken half-volley.

The ball pin-balled around Athletic’s box following Sergi Cardona’s far-post cross, and a poor clearance made room for Moleiro to bury a driven shot into the near post.

Alejandro Rego nearly salvaged a point for Athletic, striking the bar with a stunning long-range effort, but Villarreal held firm.

The victory keeps Villarreal in third place, behind Real Madrid and Barcelona, while Athletic remain eighth, level on 10 points with Elche.

Data Debrief: Villarreal snap Athletic cold streak

Villarreal recorded their first LaLiga win over Athletic since May 13, 2023, ending a four-game winless run against the Basque side.

Marcelino’s side have also kept clean sheets in three of their seven league matches this season – the most of any side in LaLiga so far.

Despite limited chances on Saturday, Villarreal were clinical from an expected goals (xG) figure of 1.07, while Athletic managed a higher xG of 1.46 but were let down by a lack of composure in front of goal.