Villarreal host Celta Vigo on Sunday night with third place in La Liga on the line and both teams trying to steady campaigns that have wobbled at the wrong time. Villarreal went into the match five points clear of Atletico Madrid and 13 ahead of fifth-placed Real Betis, while Celta arrived seventh and still level on points with sixth-placed Getafe.
Villarreal had taken four points from their previous two matches, beating Athletic Bilbao away on April 12 before drawing 1-1 with Real Oviedo on Thursday night. Celta, meanwhile, came in after a 1-0 loss to Barcelona on Wednesday and a Europa League quarter-final exit to Freiburg last week, with their European challenge under pressure after four straight defeats in all competitions and five losses in their last six.
The meeting also carried recent history. Villarreal had won only one of their last four league matches against Celta, and the reverse fixture earlier this season finished 1-1. For Celta, the margin for error is smaller because they were level with sixth-placed Getafe and trying to keep their European qualification hopes alive after a bruising week.
Villarreal’s home record gave them a strong base. They had collected 37 points from 15 home matches and conceded only 13 goals in those games, a return that has kept them in the Champions League conversation for next season. Celta’s away form has also been one of the brighter parts of their season, with 27 points from 16 matches, the third-best away record in La Liga.
Team news left both sides with absentees to manage. Villarreal were without Juan Foyth, Pau Cabanes and Logan Costa through injury, while Santiago Mourino was a major doubt and Santi Comesana was back from suspension. Georges Mikautadze had scored 11 goals in 37 appearances this season and remained one of Villarreal’s key attacking threats.
Celta were missing Miguel Roman for the rest of the campaign, and Carl Starfelt needed to be assessed before a final decision on his fitness. Borja Iglesias, who had scored 11 goals in Spain’s top flight this season, was expected to return in the final third after starting on the bench against Barcelona. The matchup, updated at 24 Apr 2026 14:51 from an earlier 24 Apr 2026 14:48 version, asked the same question in two different ways: whether Villarreal can protect their place near the top, and whether Celta can stop their slide before it damages their European push for good.
