Match Report: Duro goal decides derby against Levante UD

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Valencia CF’s persistence paid off on derby day in LaLiga, as they took victory against Levante UD at Mestalla thanks to a Hugo Duro strike. The forward found the net in the closing quarter hour, earning a much-needed triumph for the team.

The fixture began with a lot of energy shown by Valencia CF, who had the first dangerous attack through a shot over the crossbar from José Luis Gayà.

Pegging back their opponents, they only faced one significant move in the early going, as Oriol Rey came close to scoring the first goal of the match with a shot from outside the box on the counterattack.

After the first ten minutes of the match, Lucas Beltrán and Arnaut Danjuma both had chances for Valencia CF: The former reached a cutback from Thierry Correia, but had his shot saved by former Valencia CF goalkeeper Mathew Ryan; Danjuma collected the rebound, but his hit failed to find the back of the Levante net.

The following minutes saw play evened out and a battle for possession. However, on the half-hour Valencia CF again created a dangerous attack down the right flank. The move began with Correia spotting Beltrán unmarked, and he surged into the Levante penalty area and passed to Javi Guerra on the penalty spot. Defender Toljan eventually made the block.

A few minutes later, Beltrán got forward at the near post to meet an André Almeida corner, although his shot was cleared by the visitors.

seCOND HALF

After the interval, the match became much more of a back-and-forth affair. Fifty-five minutes into the second half, coach Carlos Corberán brought on Hugo Duro in a significant chance. Valencia CF subsequently regained control of possession and intensified the pressure on Levante's first line of defence.

Minutes later, Diego López seemingly put Valencia CF ahead, but after a VAR review, his goal was disallowed for offside.

Luis Rioja was introduced, and came very close to finding the net from inside the area. His thumping effort was blocked by the Levante UD defence.

The reward for Valencia CF’s efforts finally came with a spectacular bicycle kick from Duro. Gayà crossed the ball, and the forward executed an incredible acrobatic finish, to the delight of Mestalla.

A few minutes later, César Tárrega cleared a shot from Koyalipou off the line. After that, Jesús Vázquez, Dmitri Foulquier, and Dani Raba were all brought on.

Valencia CF dominated possession, but Levante UD nearly equalised in the 90th minute on a counter-attack. José Luis Morales thankfully sent the ball wide after finding himself one-on-one with Julen Agirrezabala.

After this 1-0 win, Valencia CF will now visit Rayo Vallecano at the Estadio de Vallecas on December 1^st.

MATCH STATS

1. VALENCIA CF: Agirrezabala, Thierry R. (Foulquier, 84’), Tárrega, Copete, Gayà ©, Pepelu, Javi Guerra (Santamaría, 84’), Diego López, Danjuma (L. Rioja, 73’), A. Almeida (Raba, 84’) and Beltrán (Hugo Duro, 54’).

0. LEVANTE UD: Ryan, M. Moreno, Dela, Elgezabal © (Olasagasti, 84’), I. Romero (R. Brugué, 69’), Vencedor (Morales, 84’), O. Rey (Arriaga, 69’), Etta Young (Koyalipou, 69’), Toljan, Manu Sánchez and C. Álvarez.

GOALS: Hugo Duro, 80’ (1-0).

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