Villarreal vs Malaga preview - Cazorla not in celebratory mood

Posted Thursday, April 12, 2012 by PA

Playmaker Santi Cazorla will be looking to fire Malaga a step closer to a Champions League berth with victory over Villarreal, although he insists he will not celebrate if he gets on the scoresheet against his relegation-threatened former employers.

Cazorla came up through the youth ranks at Villarreal before leaving the Yellow Submarine last summer to join Malaga for a fee reported to be around 20million euros, and he is looking forward to his return to El Madrigal.

That does not mean the 27-year-old will be doing his former side any favours, though.

"I know that I'm going to really enjoy it, because even though it will be a little strange there are going to be a lot of nice memories," said Cazorla.

"But once I'm on the pitch I'm going to forget about all that and focus on the game."

The Spain international has pledged to keep any goal celebrations under wraps however, adding: "If I'm lucky enough to score a goal, I will not celebrate out of respect to the people who for so many years have been my fans."

Since Cazorla's switch last summer, his new club have established themselves as a leading force in La Liga and they head to Villarreal in third spot in the standings, a point clear of Valencia in fourth.

In stark contrast, Villarreal have hit the skids this season and, from finishing fourth last term, they now find themselves fourth from bottom and in the midst of a relegation dogfight.

Despite that, Cazorla is not expecting it to be easy, saying "It will be a very difficult game, not only because they have a great team but because they are in a delicate situation and need the points."

Regarding his own side's bid to finish in the top four, he added: "There are still seven rounds left until the end of the season and right now we haven't achieved anything. We know that we are in a privileged position but there are a lot of teams fighting for the same thing and one victory or one defeat can see you move a number of places.

"Right now we are only thinking of Villarreal and not about being in third place."

Villarreal have won only one of their last nine league matches, while in the same period Manuel Pellegrini's Malaga have picked up six victories as well as drawing away to Real Madrid.

Villarreal coach Miguel Angel Lotina said of the game: "They are a nice opponent for us, although we know that they are doing very well this season. It's a key match."