Analysis and prediction for Racing Santander vs Villarreal: Dominating possession but still losing.
The Copa del Rey match between Racing Santander and Villarreal will take place at 1:00 AM on December 18th. Nghe An newspapers, radio, and television will analyze form, provide football commentary, and predict the score.
Latest team news for Racing Santander vs Villarreal
Unless there are any changes to the squad, coach Jose Alberto Lopez will most likely use the same starting lineup that played in the 1-1 draw with Leganes last weekend.
With Jokin Ezkieta still unavailable, Plamen Andreev is expected to continue guarding the goal.
In midfield, Gustavo Puerta and Maguette Gueye are likely to take on the role of interceptors, supporting the four-man defense.
Up front, Asier Villalibre, who has scored 10 goals since the start of the season, is expected to continue playing as the furthest forward and leading the attack.
On the visitors' side, although they don't have a match this weekend, coach Marcelino can still make some personnel changes, but many experienced players will still be in the starting lineup.
However, Villarreal will be without Pau Cabanes, Logan Costa, and Gerard Moreno, all of whom are currently sidelined with injuries.
Latest predicted lineups for Racing Santander vs Villarreal
Racing Santander:
Andreev, Salina, Ramon, Castro, Mantilla; Puerta, Gueye; Vicente, Canales, Martin; Villalibre
Villarreal:
Tenas; Altimira, Veiga, Marin, Cardona; Pepe, Partey, Gueye, Solomon; Oluwaseyi, Lopez
Latest football match prediction: Racing Santander vs Villarreal
Racing Santander earned a hard-fought victory in the 2025–26 Copa del Rey, needing extra time to beat Ponferradina 2–1.
Despite the clear difference in squad quality, coach Jose Alberto Lopez's players were unable to settle the match within the 90 minutes of regular time and had to rely on a goal in the 119th minute from Aritz Aldasoro to secure their place in the next round.
The next opponent for the Segunda Division leaders will be Villarreal, and Racing Santander aims to spring a surprise against the La Liga representatives. Fans of the blue and white team have reason to be confident, based on their team's recent form.
Racing Santander are currently on a six-match unbeaten run, with four wins and two draws, scoring a total of 13 goals during this period.
Nevertheless, the team at El Sardinero still needs to be cautious, because in the same round last season, they were eliminated from the competition by another La Liga representative, Celta Vigo.
Furthermore, Racing Santander has a very poor head-to-head record against Villarreal, having won only 2 out of their last 15 encounters. Their last victory against this opponent was in December 2011, a narrow 1-0 win in La Liga.
Conversely, despite facing numerous difficulties in European competitions, Villarreal has shown a positive performance in domestic competitions, including La Liga and the Copa del Rey.
In their most recent appearance in this tournament, the "Yellow Submarine" had to rely on a penalty shootout to overcome the underdog Antoniano. Nevertheless, they still enter this match as the favored team.
Villarreal's superior position is further solidified by their outstanding head-to-head record, with nine wins, three draws, and only two defeats in 15 official matches against Racing Santander.
Last weekend, Villarreal's La Liga match at Levante was postponed due to bad weather conditions in the Valencia area, giving coach Marcelino's team extra time to rest before their upcoming clash.
Although Villarreal are competing for the La Liga title this season, the most realistic path to winning a trophy remains the Copa del Rey. However, they haven't progressed beyond the quarter-finals since being eliminated by Barcelona in the semi-finals of the 2014–15 season.
Latest Racing Santander vs Villarreal score prediction
Based on the above football analysis, we and leading football websites worldwide have provided our predictions for the match.Racing Santander vs Villarrealas follows:
- Sportsmole:Racing Santander 1-2 Villarreal
- WhoScore:Racing Santander 2-3 Villarreal
- We predict:Racing Santander 1-2 Villarreal
When and where can I watch Racing Santander vs Villarreal live?
To watch the Racing Santander vs Villarreal match live in the Copa del Rey, taking place at 1:00 AM on December 18th, viewers can tune in to the following channels:K+ Sport,K+PMor online sports channels. We hope you enjoy watching football.
