Villarreal welcome Levante to Estadio de la Cerámica on 20 September 2026, matchday 7 of La Liga, with both clubs sitting in the lower half of the table. Villarreal are 14th with five points from six matches, one place ahead of Levante in 15th with five points from five games. Villarreal got their first league win of the season last time out and are chasing back to back victories, while Levante arrive off a 4-2 loss at Barcelona that looked heavy on the scoreboard but felt more competitive than the result suggests.
There is not much to say about Iñigo Pérez versus Luís Castro as a managerial head to head and that is not a slight on either of them. Pérez replaced Marcelino García Toral at Villarreal on 1 June 2026, while Castro took over at Levante on 20 December 2025 after Julián Calero departed. They have not faced each other enough times to draw meaningful conclusions, so this one comes down to current form and tactics rather than any established pattern.
Villarreal's last five league results read W, D, L, L, W, the most recent a 3-1 win over Málaga on 17 September. Before that they lost 2-1 at home to Real Betis on 14 September, so the inconsistency is real but the latest result at least points upward. Levante have managed one win and two draws in the league, losing the other two including that 4-2 defeat at Barcelona. Both sides have shown they can create chances and concede them too.
Villarreal are without Juan Foyth, sidelined by an Achilles injury and Santi Comesaña, who picked up a knock in a recent match. Losing Comesaña matters, as he has been their first choice defensive midfielder all season and without him there are lanes behind the press that Levante could exploit. Levante have three absences of their own: Karl Etta Eyong (thigh, back around October), Alejandro Primo (shoulder) and Hugo Sotelo (knee), which narrows Luís Castro's options considerably and leaves Petar Ratkov and Ivan Romero as the main attacking outlets, with no natural wide cover from the bench if either tires or gets marked out of the game.
Villarreal like the ball and look to transition quickly, though they have been leaky at the back when exposed. Foyth's absence removes a composed presence from the defensive line and with Comesaña gone too, there is more space for Levante to get at them. Ayoze Pérez, Gerard Moreno, Alberto Moleiro and Sergi Cardona are expected to do the attacking work, with Pape Gueye screening behind them in midfield. Levante are set up to sit in a mid block and hit on the counter, a shape Castro has kept since arriving in December and one that suits a squad missing three of its more creative players. Mathew Ryan starts in goal behind Aissa Mandi at the back, with Romero expected to start after scoring off the bench, Enzo Bardeli returning to midfield and Ratkov leading the attack. With defensive alignments disrupted by injury on both sides, Villarreal's aerial presence from Gueye and Moreno at dead ball situations is an advantage Levante, missing three attackers who would normally provide movement at restarts, will struggle to match.
The battle to watch is Moleiro against the returning Bardeli in midfield. If Bardeli pins Moleiro and stops him getting on the ball in space, Villarreal lose their chief creator and the game becomes a different proposition entirely, if Moleiro runs free, Levante's low block gets tested constantly. Moreno's hold up play against Levante's centre backs and Gueye's screening against Ratkov's runs in behind are the other match ups worth watching.
Villarreal have 23 wins from 36 meetings with Levante and have not lost at home to them since 2022, with a 5-1 win in May 2026 and a 1-0 away victory in February 2026 the most recent results.
A 2-1 Villarreal win looks right. Their press and counter attack should produce enough against Levante's two banks of four, particularly with Moreno and Ayoze Pérez leading the line. Ratkov and Romero are a genuine threat on the break but the missing trio limits how much sustained pressure Levante can apply. Villarreal's own defensive concerns have not gone away without Foyth and Comesaña but home advantage and a dominant head to head record make them clear favourites here. Back to back league victories for Villarreal, while Levante remain a point behind 13th with a game in hand.
Ryan Baldi
Football Writer
Ryan Baldi is a professional football writer with years of experience and has been featured by respected outlets such as the BBC, The Guardian, Sky Sports, DAZN, FourFourTwo, ESPN, Yahoo Sport and Football365. He has also written several books including Arsène Who?.
