MUNICH, Germany – The Allianz Arena speakers blared out “Bitter Sweet Symphony” and “The Show Must Go On” as the final whistle sounded for FC Bayern Munich’s Champions League hopes of another season, but neither would they have heard sad songs in the tiny department that houses Villarreal fans.
They were too busy celebrating their side’s 2-1 aggregate victory that secured them a place in the semi-finals of the Champions League. Once again, Unai Emery’s remarkable side shocked a European superpower. Last week’s 1-0 win over Bayern at El Madrigal was followed by a 1-1 draw here in Germany, giving the Yellow Submarine a semi-final tie against either Liverpool or Benfica.
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Leading 3-1 in the first leg in Lisbon, Liverpool are almost certain to hold their own against Villarreal in the last 16 when they host the second leg against the Portuguese side at Anfield on Wednesday. Even the most cautious Liverpool supporter will celebrate Villarreal’s rise – weak as Bayern Munich were in the two games, they are still six-time tournament winners and eternal Bundesliga champions. And Villarreal are what they have always been, a team that bats well above their weight.
They’re a club from a town of just 51,000 – less than half the capacity of Barcelona’s Camp Nou – and had never won a major trophy until that dramatic penalty shoot-out win over Manchester United in the Europa League final last season Gdansk, Poland. That win gave Villarreal last place in this year’s Champions League and they certainly made the most of it. Emery’s team stunned Juventus in Turin to eliminate the Italian giants in the last 16 and now they’ve beaten Bayern.
“If you want to achieve anything in this competition, you have to beat the big teams,” Emery said. “We have taken the first step [in the last 16] with Juve. We analyzed the game well with Bayern.”
For Bayern manager Julian Nagelsmann, no matter what he achieves domestically this season, his first year as Bayern coach is considered unsuccessful because of this result, which he even admitted.
“We’re out of the DFB Cup, out of the Champions League. I don’t think that’s good enough for FC Bayern. We had the semifinals as our minimum goal and we didn’t achieve that,” said Nagelsmann. “That counts as one of my top three defeats.”
But Villarreal rolls on. In less than 12 months, this small club from a tiny town in north-eastern Spain has beaten Manchester United, Juventus and Bayern Munich – legendary clubs with 11 Champions League titles combined. Liverpool – if it turns out to be Jurgen Klopp’s team – should beware of underestimating Villarreal as they are a side exceptionally well trained and organised. They are hardworking and dedicated and have a penchant for pissing off the European football kings.
Arnaut Danjuma’s goal in the first leg – Francis Coquelin had ruled out another goal from VAR – gave Villarreal a narrow advantage early in that game and it seemed an impossible task for Emery’s side considering Bayern are on 30 goals in the competition this season before kick-off by far the top scorer of the Champions League, Manchester City is second with 24 goals. Bayern create chances and score goals but they failed to score in Spain and Emery’s game plan for that game was clear from the start – a tight defense with little contact between the back four and midfield in defence. At one point in the first half every Villarreal player was behind the 18 yard line as they tried to frustrate Bayern and the tactic paid off.
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But to add to the home side’s anger, Villarreal also took every opportunity to end the game, running down the clock by wasting time or making the most of a challenge that would force one of their players to get injured. Despite a number of attacking talents that saw them emerge with five strikers, Bayern failed to break through and Villarreal had the best chances in the first half – both of which were wasted by Danjuma and Gerard Moreno. But when Robert Lewandowski put Bayern ahead and leveled the aggregate in the 52nd minute through a Thomas Muller pass, it seemed inevitable that the home side would push for victory by exploiting gaps in Villarreal’s defence.
But although Bayern managed 24 shots on goal, they could only get four on target. Bayern lacked cunning and were just as predictable in attack as Villarreal in their defensive tactics. Thomas Muller missed an easy chance in the 71st minute when he missed a Leroy Sane cross from six yards out but Villarreal was never overrun. They never are. And they had a counterattack too, shown with devastating timing when substitute Samu Chukwueze overcame the offside trap and scored a goal in the 88th minute after Moreno’s pass.
It was game, set and match for Villarreal and Emery had picked up another tactical victory against a highly rated manager. Emery, who has been in charge of Arsenal for less than two seasons, has shown himself to be a manager of European descent, having won four Europa Leagues – three with Sevilla and one with Villarreal. Can he add a Champions League to his tally this season? The odds are slim but Villarreal have shown us time and time again that betting against them is a risky business, no matter how famous their opponents are.