Mikautadze's late goal deepens Valencia's problems in the derby

Georges Mikautadze, former Ajax player, dealt Valencia an extra setback in the Derbi de la Comunitat when he scored the winning goal for Villarreal in the 96th minute, causing the club from the orange city to fall even deeper into trouble on Saturday.

Pre‑match: institutional uncertainty and line‑ups

Before the match, the sale of 42 % of Peter Lim's shares to Pitchwise Holdings was announced, which divided the fanbase. Javier Aguirre placed Luis Rioja and David Otorbi on the wings, with Arnaut Danjuma as the attacking reference. In defence, Justin de Haas was central at the back.

Danjuma had to leave the field after fifteen minutes due to an injury; Dani Raba came on in his place via a stretcher. The replacement line‑up still gave the team an early lead.

Match progression: goals, cards and substitutions

In the 38th minute Pepelu was awarded a penalty after a VAR check on a duel between Dani Raba and Renato Veiga; he placed the ball from eleven metres into the net and Valencia went 1‑0 up. Villarreal dominated the first half‑hour and shot nine times on goal, but only one shot was on target. Buchanan forced Dimitrievski into a spectacular save before the penalty was awarded. Peter Gulacsi blocked a hard shot from José Gayá in the second half, keeping the score level.

Villarreal climbs up, Valencia slips towards the relegation zone

Fifty minutes later, in the 69th, Alex Freeman headed Sergi Cardona's cross level and brought the match to 1‑1. Tension rose when Papa Gueye received a direct red card in the 79th for an elbow on Gayá, and Harvey Elliott was sent off with a double yellow in the 89th after he had received two yellow cards within a minute.

Aftermath: Mikautadze's impact and statistics

Georges Mikautadze, who came off the bench twenty minutes before full‑time, scored the winning goal for Villarreal in the 96th minute, leaving Valencia without points and still sitting in the penultimate place. The Georgian has four goals and two assists in twelve matches this season, and the game attracted 46,580 spectators to Mestalla. The Derbi de la Comunitat also acquired a Dutch hue, which attracted the attention of the Dutch media.

With both teams down to ten players and a loss of possession in the final minute, the match confirmed Valencia's problems both on sporting and institutional levels, while the club looks for a way out of the downward spiral.