Mestalla Stadium
29hb September 2008
Walaupun mendahului seawal minit ke-12, namun kehebatan jentera serangan Valencia amat sukar untuk dibendung dengan dibarisi oleh David Villa, Fernando Morientes, Joachim dan Mata.
Jelas sekali Skuad Galician ini amat memerlukan pemain inspirasi di barisan pertahanan seperti Nourudine Naybet, Donato dan Mauro Silva pada masa lalu.
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REVIEW: VALENCIA 4 – DEPORTIVO 2 (LIGA)
29 Sep 2008
A disappointing Deportivo wasn’t able to stop Valencia’s machinery, especially during the second half, part in which the Galicians leaked three goals. Like it happened in the game with Villarreal, Lotina’s scheme only worked for the first half an hour, time in which his team dominated the actions and even took the lead in the score. But three assists from Mata plus two goals of Villa showed the sadness of this Deportivo.
BEFORE THE GAME
Lotina sent to the pitch the expected 4-2-3-1 formation, with Juan Rodríguez and Antonio Tomás in midfield, and with Mista returning to the starting eleven trying to break the lack of goals at Deportivo. In Valencia Unai Emery was trusting in the combination between Mata, David Villa, Joaquín and Morientes.
FIRST HALF
All eyes were on Mata and Villa, players that were representing the 75% of the goals scored by Valencia on this liga season, but the true is that neither of these two men touched the ball within the first fifteen minutes, the cause was the strategy of Depor, a squad that was ordered and that was moving the ball with fast and short passes, that’s how Valencia didn’t have a chance against Aranzubia within the first thirteen minutes. The order was the main characteristic of Lotina’s Depor, because everybody was helping in the defensive tasks, especially Pablo Alvarez, player that was highly involved helping Laure to control Mata.
Actually it was Depor who was creating more danger over Renan’s goal. At minute 3, Guardado sent a cross from the left that nobody in Valencia could clear, the ball reached Mista in the far post, but the striker couldn’t control it and when he did it, there was no angle to send a shot. Three minutes later Guardado was again searching for Mista with a long ball, but Renan arrived first.
Then the reward for the initial effort came at the 11th minute, a long ball of Verdú to the right corner was run by Pablo Alvarez until the end, then he faced Emliano Moretti and sent a cross that hit the defender first, then the ball hit the ground and when Renan tried to cleared it, instead the Brazilian pushed the ball in.
The goal didn’t awake Valencia as Deportivo continued dominating the actions with its short passes and its anticipation over the movements of the rival. The first approximation of Valencia came until minute 13, it was a ball lost in attack by Depor that ended with a long-distance drilling shot from Joaquín, and the ball went wide. But Depor continued insisting, Zé Castro couldn’t head a corner of Guardado (15’) and later a cross from Pablo Alvarez was cleared by Valencia’s defenders (16’).
At minute 20, it seemed the game would change, because a double action for the locals almost ends with the equalising goal. The first action was a drilling cross from Joaquín that Villa found inside the box, his shot was blocked by Aranzubia and then Morientes fouled the keeper. The second opportunity was a new cross from Joaquín that Mata found in the entrance of the area, but his final shot was too high.
Despite this double opportunity, Deportivo continued dominating the game, without creating danger against Renan, but neither suffering any dangerous attack from the Valencian squad. But things changed at minute 35 as Emery’s squad achieved the equaliser. A new cross from Joaquín, this time a high one, was found by Juan Manuel Mata in the far post as Aranzubia couldn’t clear the ball first, the resulting header went to the back of the net passing between Zé Castro, Laure and Morientes.
The goal didn’t cause the expected ‘avalanche’ of Valencia over Deportivo, but the Galicians lost the concentration since that moment, suddenly the order was gone and neither Antonio Tomás nor Verdú were appearing in order to put the pause in midfield. However the attacks of Valencia weren’t occurring, it was until the final four minutes when the locals started to push forward searching for the second goal.
And the occasions created by Valencia were caused by the own mistakes committed by Depor’s players. At minute 41, an error of Laure when the youngster was clearing a ball inside the box almost end in goal, but the shot of Joaquín was deflected to a corner. Two minutes later Verdú lost a ball in the border of the area, Mata made a quick pass to Villa, but the final drilling shot from El Guaje went just centimeters away from the left post of Aranzubia.
The first half resulted to be an entertaining show between a Deportivo that struck first and that controlled the actions in the first half an hour, but a later reaction from Valencia equalised the game and even put Emery’s squad close to the victory. The whole Depor’s’ squad seemed focused, tough in the final minutes the first signs of tireness appeared.
SECOND HALF
If the first part was a lesson of order by Depor, the second was a disaster. Because Lotina’s squad was a soulless team that didn’t know how to defend and neither how to attack a rival that searched the victory since the beginning. Just four minutes after the pause, David Villa appeared to capitalise a new ball lost by Depor in attack, but the hero in the play was Mata, because the youngster was the one that put the long pass to his team mate, Villa just had to elude Zé Castro and beat Aranzubia with a drilling shot that hit the leg of the keeper first.
The order at Deportivo was gone, and everything was now reduced to witness attack after attack by the local team. A minute 52 Valencia was close to score again as a new cross from Joaquín didn’t find a receiver inside the box. With Verdú and Antonio Tomás disappeared, the only way in which Depor was able to create danger was with set-pieces, that’s how the Galicians had their first chance in the second part. It was a free-kick that Verdú sent to the box and that Zé Castro couldn’t connect in the near post (53’). Four minutes later it was Guardado who was close to score with a direct-free kick that Renan saved in his left post.
But it was Valencia who was having the best occasions. At minute 59, Mata, definitely the best player in the home team, sent a new cross that Albelda found in the border of the area, his final shot was saved by Aranzubia. The resulting corner-kick was also near to enter as Edú headed a ball that passed near to the right post. The third goal of Valencia seemed a matter of time.
Lotina saw that his team was broke in two pieces, that’s why he decided to make a double substitution with thirty minutes remaining in the clock; he sent Omar Bravo and Lafita to the pitch while Mista and Antonio Tomás left the game. The double move meant a tactical chance as Verdú delayed his position on the field and as Lafita started to perform as playmaker. But the modification didn’t work and Deportivo continued to be a ghost over the grass.
Actually it was Valencia who scored again nine minutes later, once again the play was started by Mata on the left wing as Deportivo lost a new ball in midfield, the drilling cross of Mata was found by Joaquín inside the box, the ex-Betis just had to push the ball in passing it through the legs of Aranzubia. It was over for Deportivo. Lotina’s men were laying defeated, running without knowing where. It was the part of the game in which Valencia enjoyed the most as its strikers started to have several chances to increase the lead.
At minute 73, Lotina made the final modification sending Riki for Guardado, with this modification Riki took the right wing, Pablo Álvarez the playmaking function and Lafita the left wing. But it was too late as the will of the players disappeared since a while ago. The only chance for Riki was a wide free-kick at minute 76.
Valencia even increased the humiliation with a fourth goal; once again the last pass was coming from Mata. The play started with a long ball of Manuel Fernandes, who replaced Edú twenty minutes before, later Mata controlled it and drilled it to the far post, David Villa just arrived to push the ball in. With these two goals, Villa is the current Pichichi in la liga with six goals in five matches and it also meant the ninth goal of El Guaje against Depor.
At least the Galicians were able to clean a little bit the humiliation with a new goal. And it was a strange one. Pablo Alvarez won a ball in midfield, but it was immediately fouled, referee Pérez Lasa allowed to continue the play as Lafita received the ball tough his assistant was lifting the flag. The situation created confusing in Valencia’s defensive sector, because Albelda thought the referee would whistle and did nothing to stop a Angel Lafita that faced Renan in a one-to-one action. The Aragonian scored the goal in a coal way: drilling the ball under the body of the Brazilian keeper.
Lafita even had the chance to score the third goal for Depor a couple of minutes later, but his shot inside the box was deflected to corner. But it was Valencia the side that had the last chance of the night, and it was the endless nightmare of Deportivo who created the occasion: Juan Manuel Mata. He put a new golden pass that left Joaquín alone against Aranzubia, the winger eluded the keeper but Laure arrived and cleared the danger in the last second.
AFTER THE GAME
Deportivo showed two different faces in the game, the best one in the first part as Lotina’s side controlled the actions and even took the lead in the score. But the strategy of Lotina only lasted half an hour, just as it occurred at Villarreal. The worst face of Depor was seen during the second half, period of time in which the squad was totally surpassed and humiliated by a Valencia that continues to be the leader of Primera División.
Deportivo still living in mid-table in la liga, now Lotina’s squad will try to achieve the comeback in the UEFA cup series with SK Brann Bergen, the Galicians need at least a two-goal victory in order to reach the extra time. Maybe the only good news in the game with Valencia is that the squad found the goal after four official matches scoreless. The most worrying thing is without doubt the passive face showed in the second half, an image of impotence.
MATCH STATISTICS
Valencia: Renan - Miguel, Albiol, Alexis, Moretti - Joaquín, Albelda, Edu (Manuel Fernandes 63’), Mata - Villa (Angulo 82’), Morientes (Vicente 68’).
Deportivo: Aranzubia - Laure, Lopo, Ze Castro, Filipe - Juan Rodríguez, Antonio Tomás (Omar Bravo 60’) - Pablo Álvarez, Verdú, Guardado (Riki 72’) - Mista (Lafita 60’).
Goals: 0-1: (11’) Moretti (O.G.), 1-1: (34’) Mata, 2-1: (49’)Villa, 3-1: (68’) Joaquín, 4-1: (82’)Villa. 4-2: (85’) Lafita.
Referee: Pérez Lasa. He showed yellow card to Filipe (24’), Laure (74’), Moretti (85’) and Albelda (85’).
Venue: Mestalla (45,000)
Other statistics:
Ball possession (56% - 44%);
Total shots (24 - 7);
Shots on target (9 - 3);
Saves by the keeper (0 – 3);
Corner-kicks (5 – 9);
Offsides (2 – 0);
Fouls (11 – 16);
.
Accuracy of passes (88.12% - 84.12%)
