The hosts created enough opportunities to take control of the contest, but their failure to score gradually changed the way they played. Pérez believed anxiety crept into his side as the missed chances mounted, allowing Elche to become more comfortable.
“The first half was excellent. Elche are an extremely difficult team to play against, and I have watched all their matches. At half-time, we could have been two or three goals ahead,” the Villarreal coach said.
“But that didn’t happen, and the anxiety appeared because we felt we deserved something. We lost our fluency, our passing became less effective, we attacked worse and gave the opposition opportunities.”
Pérez was adamant that the number of changes to his starting line-up was not responsible for the result. Villarreal had rotated heavily after their midweek Champions League victory over Napoli, but he argued that the team’s best football had come before the substitutions.
“It doesn’t hold up to say that we made nine changes and then played one of our best first halves,” he said. “The changes have nothing to do with why we didn’t win. Logan and Carlos played very well.”
He also backed his forwards to recover their scoring touch, insisting their established records meant there was no reason to lose faith in them.
“They have scored goals throughout their careers and they will score again. They don’t give me doubts. They are top players, and we have to help them and be patient with them,” Pérez said.
For Elche, the point represented a significant reward for their defensive discipline. Martín Anselmi praised his players for adapting to Villarreal’s strengths, explaining that his side had changed its approach after the break to limit the space available to the hosts.
“In the first half, we went blow for blow, pressing high and trying to jump out. With Villarreal’s quality, they know how to turn and play forward to find spaces. In the second half, we stayed compact to deny those spaces and make ourselves strong,” Anselmi said.
The Elche coach also praised goalkeeper Matías Dituro, who helped secure another clean sheet, and highlighted the importance of the team’s growing competitiveness.
Anselmi pointed to two consecutive matches without conceding and three league games without defeat as evidence of progress, even if results alone did not tell the whole story.
Villarreal will instead have to address their wastefulness before facing Liverpool. Pérez believes the performance contained plenty worth repeating, but the failure to convert clear opportunities remains an issue his players must resolve.