| Levante (1) | Valencia (0) |
| Roger Marti 18′ |
It was back in March 2016 when we last lost to our local rivals Levante UD in LaLiga. Today, we went back to that dark day.
In a tepid match where both sides’ passing and shot accuracy would embarrass even a Stormtrooper, it was Levante who came out on top with a single goal early in the first half.
The mood was set in the first 10 minutes, when we had 2 free kicks not too far from goal. Both times, Goncalo Guedes stepped up only to launch the ball into the cosmos. The Jedi he was not. Carlos Soler, who was out after accumulating two yellow cards, was sorely missed.
We continued to squander possession and even gift it away. Example one: Mouctar Diakhaby, who upon collecting the ball in the first half, decided to pass it straight back to Ruben Rochina. Rochina found Roger Marti, who unwrapped the present with a low finish past Cillessen.
For the rest of the match, several poor set pieces and headers were all we could muster. Not even super-sub Manu Vallejo, who came on for Lee Kang In at the 63rd minute, could save us.
After last week’s heroics against Villarreal, there was some hope that we could muster up another strong performance. Instead, the team was flaccid, out of ideas and uninspired. We have only won 2 of our 14 away LaLiga games now, one of the worst away forms in the entire league.
Said Oliva: “It is a heavy defeat and we feel let down by the result, we know that we still have to keep fighting for the 12 games we have left. We’ll try to win every game.”
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