The first half was strangely devoid of real chances for either side; Lotina's 4-2-3-1 worked decently enough for the first fifteen minutes, but failed to create any real chances; in the remainder of the half Valencia seemed to have a better idea of what they wanted to do with the ball, though they hardly threatened the Villarreal goal either.
The referee seemed to favor Valencia as far as fouls went--Tino Costa had the best chance of the half from a swerving free kick created by a soft challenge--but yet three of Valencia's back line, Ricardo Costa, Rami, and Barragan, picked up yellow cards.
Starting Wakaso Mubarak was always going to be a risky gamble, and there was some good Wakaso--in particular a nice pass inside the box to Borja, who just dithered too long on the ball--but also some bad Wakaso, especially overcommitting to win the ball and then giving away a free kick in a dangerous area.
Overall, no goals and no outstanding chances was a fair reflection of a strangely subdued match at the Mestalla.
HT Valencia 0-0 Villarreal
The second half was pretty much all Valencia, frankly. I don't know what Unai Emery said ...
