The opening moments were fiercely contested with little space given, and the best chance in a physical, interruption-filled first 30 minutes fell to Takefusa Kubo, who had a shot aimed at the bottom-right corner saved brilliantly by Luiz Júnior, keeping the score level.

A minute later, Umar Sadiq missed a chance when he was through on goal, as theVillarreal goalkeeper quickly closed him down.

In a twist of irony after his earlier miss, Kubo played a key role in Villarreal’s opening goal on the 33rd minute.

His poorly judged pass to Brais Méndez during a counterattack resulted in a turnover, and after Kubo’s attempted clearance was intercepted by Santi Comesaña, Villarreal’s number 14 found Tajon Buchanan on the left wing. The Canadian sprinted forward and delivered a precise pass forPérez to finish at the far post.

Just before halftime, Luiz Júnior made two crucial saves, deflecting an Aritz Elustondo header from a powerful free-kick by Sergio Gómez, and then stopping a close-range shot from Méndez at his near post.

However, the momentum didn’t carry immediately after the break, and Villarreal extended their lead in the 57th minute when Pérez broke free and foundMoleiro, who struck the ball into the top-left corner from the edge of the box.

Despite their difficult situation, Sociedad quickly responded, reducing the deficit when Kubo capitalized on a failed clearance, intercepted the ball, and set up Carlos Soler, who placed a shot into the top-left corner of Villarreal’s goal to keep the hosts in the game.

With renewed energy, La Real nearly equalized around the 75th minute when Gonçalo Guedes’ shot to the top-right corner forced Luiz Júnior into a full-stretch save.

Sociedad battled hard until the final moments, and with just five minutes remaining in regulation, Ander Barrenetxea curled a beautiful free-kick into the same corner that Soler had targeted.

But the excitement wasn’t over, as with only two minutes of added time left, Moleiro smashed a low shot from the edge of the box after a failed corner clearance, bringing Villarreal back within two points of league leaders Barcelona.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Ayoze Pérez (Villarreal)

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