First Team17 October 2026

MATCH REPORT: Valencia CF draw with Athletic Club

The Matchday 9 fixture ends goalless at Mestalla

Valencia CF’s Matchday 9 encounter against Athletic Club in LALIGA EA SPORTS, held at Mestalla, ended in a 0-0 draw.

Javier Aguirre’s men began the match with high pressure and energy, leading to several early forays near opposition goal. Athletic Club looked to counter-attack, but were thwarted by a solid José Luis Gayà -who was making his 350th LALIGA appearance for Valencia CF.

The home team sought to control the game through possession, though Athletic Club proved quick in their attacking-to-defensive transitions. A threat down the left flank was provided through Gayà; in one notable instance, the full-back broke into the penalty area and played the ball to Hugo Duro, though the forward’s attempt to finish was an awkward one that he failed to convert.

At the other end, Stole Dimitrievski had to stretch to reach a low shot from Iñaki Williams that was headed toward the right post, tipping the ball away.

SECOND HALF

Six minutes into the second half, Valencia CF had a great opportunity through Arnaut Danjuma off a counterattack. The Dutch winger made a run into open space and received the ball, but his shot went wide of Unai Simón’s goal.

Shortly after, another chance arose when Gayà tried his luck -only to be thwarted by the goalkeeper again.

Luis Rioja and David Otorbi then entered the pitch to change things up in the attack.

Valencia CF kept up the pressure, and Otorbi came very close to scoring the opener during another counterattack; he managed to dribble past Unai Simón, but the Athletic Club defence blocked his shot.

Moments later, César Tárrega prevented a goal for the visitors by clearing a shot from Navarro off the goal line. Amidst these frantic minutes, Valencia CF responded once again through another play involving Otorbi.

Valencia CF continued to push forward and came close to the opening goal again through a combination between Gayà and Javi Guerra; the latter took the shot, but Unai Simón made the save to deny him. With eighty minutes played, Guerra came close to scoring once more, following a sequence involving Otorbi and Harvey Elliott in the build-up.

Despite the team’s determined efforts to secure a victory, they were unable to find the breakthrough goal.

Next up, Valencia CF will host Villarreal CF at Mestalla on Saturday, October 24th, in a regional derby in the top flight.

MATCH STATS

0. VALENCIA CF: Dimitrievski, Gayà © (J. Vázquez, 85’), De Haas (Elliott, 74’), Pepelu, C. Tárrega, Maffeo, Danjuma, G. Rodríguez (Ugrinic, 85’), Javi Guerra, Raba (Otorbi, 54’) and Hugo Duro (L. Rioja, 54’).

0. ATHLETIC CLUB: Unai Simón, Johaneko (Areso, 63’), Laporte, Paredes, H. Rincón, Galarreta (Rego, 63’), Gerenabarrena, Navarro, Berengue, Canales and Williams (Guruzeta, 63’ – Maroan, 69’).

REFEREE: Adrián Cordero.

Copyright 2013-2025 Valencia CF. The use of the editorial content of the article is permitted as long as the source gets the credit and contains the following link: www.valenciacf.com. Photographs by Lázaro de la Peña, reuse is not permitted.
Valencia CF 0 : 0 Athletic Club
2026-10-17 - Mestalla
LaLiga

  • Lineup Valencia CF

  • Stole Dimitrievski (Shirt number 1) - Goalkeepers
  • José Gayà (Shirt number 14) - Defenders
  • Pablo Maffeo (Shirt number 24) - Defenders
  • Justin de Haas (Shirt number 12) - Defenders
  • César Tárrega (Shirt number 5) - Defenders
       - Yellow Card: 90'
  • Guido Rodríguez (Shirt number 2) - Midfielders
  • Pepelu (Shirt number 18) - Midfielders
       - Yellow Card: 87'
  • Arnaut Danjuma (Shirt number 7) - Midfielders
  • Dani Raba (Shirt number 19) - Midfielders
       - Yellow Card: 19'
  • Javi Guerra (Shirt number 8) - Midfielders
  • Hugo Duro (Shirt number 9) - Forwards

Opposition lineup

  • Unai Simón (Shirt number 1) - Goalkeepers
  • Aymeric Laporte (Shirt number 14) - Defenders
       - Yellow Card: 38'
  • Hugo Rincón (Shirt number 15) - Defenders
  • Johaneko Louis-Jean (Shirt number 31) - Defenders
  • Aitor Paredes (Shirt number 4) - Defenders
  • Íñigo Ruiz de Galarreta (Shirt number 16) - Midfielders
       - Yellow Card: 57'
  • Peio Canales (Shirt number 28) - Midfielders
  • Beñat Gerenabarrena (Shirt number 24) - Midfielders
       - Yellow Card: 42'
  • Robert Navarro (Shirt number 23) - Midfielders
  • Alex Berenguer (Shirt number 7) - Midfielders
  • Iñaki Williams (Shirt number 9) - Forwards

Time: 94min

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