Mallorca fire four past Quique Setien’s slowly sinking Yellow Submarine
Despite some early dominance, Villarreal came crashing down soon enough, conceding a goal and a red card in the most spectacular fashion in the space of two minutes.
Capitalising on a defensive mishap, ex-Lazio forward Vedat Muriqi set Tino Kadewere up for a sitter in his first start for Mallorca, before a dirty swipe by Manu Trigueros prompted referee Jose Sanchez to reduce Villarreal to ten men.
Counting their luck, Mallorca breathed a sigh of relief at the home return, knowing this contest was in their favour following a fourth successive away defeat.
Quique Setien’s men had other plans, though, marshalling ahead and eventually hurting the hosts on the offence. Just as Mallorca’s opener arrived on the back of a mistake, so did Villarreal’s, thanks to an exquisite effort by Jose Luis Morales.
Remarkably, the hosts immediately retaliated to take the lead on the verge of halftime via Daniel Rodriguez's superbly guided header into the bottom corner.
There was no lack of surprises once the match resumed after the break, as Villarreal levelled terms once again following Samuel Chukwueze’s brilliant chip past a helpless Predrag Rajkovic.
All that mattered thereafter was whether the visitors could resist Mallorca’s advances longer than they did before. They did, however only for a paltry five minutes, before giving in to yet another Rodriguez header that Pepe Reina’s fingertips couldn’t keep out.
The goal fest continued, with Muriqi registering his brace shortly after from a sniping effort after Antonio Raillo set him up.
None had expected Villarreal to muster momentum as they did in the final minutes, but the two-goal gap was a bit too much for their asking. Their dreadful away streak continues, having recorded just one win in their last nine outings.
The Islanders, on the other hand, unbeaten in five straight home games, continue dreaming of European qualification for the first time since their 2003/04 UEFA Cup appearance.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Vedat Muriqi (Real Mallorca)
