0-2: A WIN TO BUILD CONFIDENCE AND GIVE US SOME BREATHING ROOM

The match at the Mestalla had been underlined in the calendar as one of the most important fixtures of the season. After an away victory at Cádiz CF, José Luis Mendilibar’s men landed in Valencia with the clear objective of securing another away win. In a very even first half, Badé managed to score the first goal of the evening just after the break, scoring from a corner. 

Suso, fifteen minutes from the end, secured a big win for Sevilla which moves us up the table, eight points clear of the relegation zone before our quarter final clash in the UEFA Europa League with Manchester United on Thursday.

The home side made it obvious that their aim was to take the three points, with the first chance of the game falling to Castillejo, but the play ended owing to an offside call. In the initial period of the match, Foulquier, with a cross from the right side of the pitch, forced Dmitrovic into making a smart stop so that the scores stayed level. 

Despite the good start from Baraja’s men, Ocampos almost scored the first goal of the game, but he was not able to latch onto the cross from Navas. Moving the ball from side-to-side, Sevilla looked for spaces in a very compact defence, but did not offer any spaces of their own to the opposition. 

The first half was a very even affair.

In the final stages of the first half, the home side sent men forward, forcing Dmitrovic into stopping several crosses that were being sent into the box. The left side with Gayá and Lato proved to be particularly dangerous. As Valencia looked to dominate possession, Mendilibar’s men didn’t drop their intensity as they sought to win the ball back.

Lucas Ocampos won the ball back in the middle of the pitch, and tried to find En-Nesyri but the ball was cleared by the defence. This was an even match, and this was shown as both teams headed down the tunnel at half-time with the scores level and everything to play for in the second half.

Early in the second half, Badé gave his side the lead from a set-piece.

At the start of the second half, both teams fell back into the same pattern. In one of Sevilla FC's best chances at Mestalla, Suso surprised from outside the area with a left-footed shot that skimmed the woodwork of the goal defended by Mamardashvili. At the back of the home defence, En-Nesyri and Ocampos were beginning to find the space to make more persistent attacks on the rival goal.

After a good start to the second half, Badé put his teammates in front from a corner and after a series of rebounded shots in the box, Badé put his teammates ahead from the ground. This put the icing on the cake of a great defensive display from the French defender. Six minutes later, Baraja's team would ask for a penalty that was not awarded by Del Cerro Grande after a VAR review of the position of Fernando's arm when the ball hit him.

Valencia CF's nerves were beginning to get the better of them, and Samu Lino tried to level the score with a powerful shot that also failed to find the back of Dmitrovic's net. Fifteen minutes from the end, Suso took advantage of a good pass from Montiel to beat Mamardashvili with a shot at the near post.

After the goal, the referee awarded a penalty after Marcos André had tripped Marcao inside the area, a decision that he himself rectified after a VAR call. With no time left for things to change, Sevilla FC won three vital points before facing another exciting Europa League match in front of our home fans.

MATCH REPORT

0. VALENCIA CF: Mamardashvili, Foulquier, Diakhaby, Cenk, Gayá, Lato (Jesús Vázquez, min 68), Musah (Samuel Lino, min. 59), Ilaix Moriba, A. Almeida (Marcos André, min. 80), S. Castillejo (J. Guerra, min, 80), Cavani (Hugo Duro, min 68). 

2. SEVILLA FC: Dmitrovic, Jesús Navas, Gudelj, Badé, Rekik (Montiel, min 67), Jordán (Rakitic, min 67), Fernando, Ocampos, Suso (Marcao, min 76), Bryan Gil (Lamela, min 91), En-Nesyri (Rafa Mir, min 91). 

GOALS: 0-1: Badé, min 54. 0-2: Suso, min 75. 

REFEREE: Carlos del Cerro Grande, from Madrid. Yellow cards for Ocampos, Jordán, Montiel, Gudelj and Hugo Duro. Ilaix Moriba was sent off.