Eibar claim credible goalless stalemate against Valencia
The Armeros picked up an excellent point in their visit to Mestalla
Eibar played out a goalless draw with Valencia in the sides' LaLiga Matchday 35 encounter as the Armeros emerged with a credible point from their trip to the fourth-placed hosts, who are bidding to secure a Champions League spot. José Luis Mendilibar's men produced a particularly fine defensive display but failed to cap off the performance with a winning goal in the closing stages.
The opening 45 minutes were largely bereft of goalscoring chances. Eibar began proceedings by applying intense pressure in the hosts' half, which prevented Valencia from posing any serious threat on Yoel's goal. The home side, however, came inches away from taking the lead through Rodrigo. The Valencia frontman, who was heavily involved throughout, latched on to a ball over the top and drove into the area, before contriving to pull his effort narrowly wide of the upright.
Eibar's riposte came in the final 15 minutes of the first half, when Pedro León tried to catch Neto out with a rasping long-range free-kick from the right flank. The Eibar man forced the Brazilian shotstopper into a stunning acrobatic save which saw him claw the ball out from off his goalline.
After the restart, the hosts poured forward as they sought to make a breakthrough and Eibar were made to really dig in defensively to repel Los Chés' slick attacking play. It was at this point that Yoel came to the fore in this, his first competitive start following an 11-month layoff. The Galician custodian played an instrumental role in ensuring his side registered a clean sheet, pulling off four stellar saves.
In the closing stages, the game opened up and this saw Eibar carve out several chances on the break. The most clear cut of these openings fell to Kike García. The Armeros' hitman connected with Fabián Orellana's inviting cross from the right with a back-heeled effort, but Martín Montoya was on hand to get a block in. There was to be no change to the scoreline as Eibar emerged from this most difficult of away trips with a point to show for their efforts.