A goal from Berenguer leaves Mestalla without a farewell party

Valencia are already feeling the strain of the season, so much so that Mestalla was no party against Athletic Bilbao , and not just because of the defeat Berenguer inflicted on them with a goal in the top corner that Mamardashvili couldn't quite manage. Freed from the tension, the wear and tear left Corberán 's team short of ideas and without the reserves to attempt the miracle of finding themselves in contention for Europe. They will close the year against Betis to grab onto the mid-table, a position for which they were conceived. The rest was a nightmare and a dream. [ Narration and statistics: 0-1 ]

It's not easy to play countless games at once, and Valencia failed to do so. They needed a chance to stay at the bottom of the European standings, and they began by proving incapable of fulfilling their initial objective: beating Athletic Club.

Neither side was relaxed, but the tension didn't allow for a vibrant duel that would energize the crowd. The Lions already have the Champions League in their pocket and weren't even looking sideways at what Villarreal was doing on Montjuïc. The only thing left at stake is the honor of clinching the fourth place they've held for almost the entire year. Of course, Valverde didn't start Iñaki Williams , but he did recover Sancet 's instinct to start, worrying Mamardashivili , who was cheered and excited in his last game as a Valencian before leaving for Liverpool.

The response was a cross from Rioja that Unai Simón saved, and Tárrega almost scored a golden opportunity from that rehearsed corner. Valencia tried to control the game, with so many inaccuracies that it allowed Athletic to settle comfortably. There was no one to break the tie because the duels were so evenly matched. Gayà held Berenguer back and forced him to keep an eye on him, and Barrenechea , watched from the stands by Unai Emery , recovered the ball with one eye on Sancet and the other on the fight with Beñat Prados.

From the 20th minute onwards, the Lions began to show their claws. Guruceta did so with a backheel to a Lekue cross that nearly surprised the Georgian goalkeeper. The same happened to Unai Simón, who struggled to stop a fiendish Diego López on the counterattack. Athletic created two chances before the break: a shot from Sancet, which was very forced, and a free kick from the edge of the area that crashed into the wall. However, the save of the afternoon was Unai's hand on Diakhaby 's point-blank header from a corner.

The break didn't change the match. The skirmishes kept coming... and the mistakes. While Rioja and Sadiq forced Yuri to stop the Nigerian from shooting past Simón, Mamardashvili comfortably saved a right-footed shot from Guruceta from the edge of the box.

There was no spark in the match, and the coaches looked to their benches. Although Sadiq was very inaccurate, Corberán preferred to bring Diego López off the field, looking for Iván Jaime to control the ball. Valverde sought to revolutionize the situation with Unai Gómez and Iñaki Williams . It seemed as if nothing would change when Berenguer appeared, switched flanks, and, from the left, he stalked to the edge of the area to unleash a right-footed shot into Mamardashvili's impossible corner . Athletic had already found their reward, much to the annoyance of Mestalla. At times, the stadium forgot how much it had suffered and demanded more from its players. Unai Gómez forced the Valencia goalkeeper to back down with a shot from Iñaki's cross.

The end of the match was what unleashed nostalgia. The reality of losing Valencia in recent years, a goalkeeper who has earned many points, and also one of its captains, was the shock of reality. Jaume Domenech ends his time at Valencia with the memory of his figure perched on the crossbar of the Villamarín goal after winning the Copa del Rey in 2019. The squad raised his hand in the air and Mestalla cheered him on.