With seven matches remaining in the championship, Villarreal CF holds a fifteen-point lead over the fifth-placed team, virtually guaranteeing their participation in the next edition of the Champions League. Now, the challenge is to defend their current third position, an achievement the team has only managed once in its history, in the 2004/05 season, under coach Manuel Pellegrini.

The team led by Marcelino, which last season qualified for the top continental club competition despite finishing fifth, is one step away from securing a top-four spot in the table. This has been achieved in four of the club's twenty-six seasons in the top flight.

Pellegrini guided Villarreal to a top-four finish in the 2004/05 and 2007/08 seasons; Marcelino did so in the 2015/16 season; while Juan Carlos Garrido achieved it in the 2010/11 season. The team's best historical classification in the First Division dates back to the 2007/08 season, when they finished as runners-up.

Furthermore, Marcelino could surpass Manuel Pellegrini as the coach who has most frequently qualified Villarreal for the Champions League, with a total of three. It is worth noting that in the 2015-16 campaign, the team from La Plana failed to reach the final phase after being eliminated in the preliminary round against Monaco.

That team that achieved third place in the 2004/05 season had a magical night against Levante. With the iconic image of one of their players with braids, the Yellow Submarine defeated the 'granota' team and secured their first participation in the Champions League, a historic milestone for the club. In that match, Pellegrini's team fielded a notable lineup, and goals from several players sealed the victory. This squad, the following year, continued to make history by reaching the semifinals of the Champions League, falling to Arsenal but delivering a memorable campaign.