Meetings between the two sides are always particularly meaningful and the story stretches back decades
Villarreal fans in Liverpool in 2022
Villarreal fans in Liverpool in 2022(Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)
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Villarreal is 1,000 miles from Liverpool, but their identity has been shaped by one of The Beatles' most famous hits. Despite being an inland city best known for creating ceramics, the Spanish team are connected to Merseyside through their moniker as the Yellow Submarine.
The names mean any time there is a meeting between Liverpool FC and Villarreal it feels particularly meaningful, and tonight's game in the Champions League will not be any different. Speaking to the Guardian, Villarreal's long-serving president, Fernando Roig, said: "It’s emotional to play Liverpool. This will be the fifth time we have faced them, the third at Anfield.
"The other two were European semi-finals. I’ll watch the morning training session, travel with the team. We’ll go and eat, everywhere we go we get treated very well and we treat them well back. The next day I’ll watch the under-19s in the morning, that I do like. And then the game, which I don’t. Then we’ll fly back here very, very late. It’s very stressful.”
The first time Villarreal visited Anfield was 10 years ago when the two sides met in the Europa League semi-final. The clubs celebrated their cultural connection as Villarreal officials gifted Liverpool with a ceramic yellow submarine, which now features in the LFC museum.
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The story of why Villareal have this connection to the city stretches all the way back to 1947. When the club were founded in 1923, they opted for a more traditional kit colours of white shirt and black short.
Villarreal's famous yellow kit
Villarreal's famous yellow kit(Image: Getty Images)
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However, they were forced into a drastic appearance change 24 years later when a young man from Villareal named Manuel Vilanova was tasked with buying white shirts from Valencia during a stock shortage in the post war period.
During his trip to neighbouring Valencia, Manuel was unable to find white shirts so had to opt for the only ones available: yellow. The colour is untraditional in football kits, but this meant Villarreal has embraced it as a key part of their identity.
The change led to a reversal of fortunes on the pitch and the sanctity with which fans treat the strip means it is even referred to in the club hymn: "Els nostres colours són el blau i el groc” (“Our colours are blue and yellow”)"
Blue shorts were dropped for all yellow in 2004 and everything about the club is amarillo, even the striking stadium. It's natural the colour had to feature in the anthem and the story of how this started began in 1966 when the team were chasing promotion in 1968.
The all yellow Estadio de la Ceramica
The all yellow Estadio de la Ceramica(Image: Getty Images)
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When the Beatles released Yellow Submarine in 1966, the song travelled all over the world and a Spanish version was recorded by Los Mustang. This song was played on the terraces during an important game and caught on as fans adopted the lyrics for the team: "Amarillo es el Villarreal."
The moniker has stuck and has been the soundtrack to the rollercoaster journey the club has been on for the next six decades.
Villarreal CF fans in Liverpool is always an emotional reunion
Villarreal CF fans in Liverpool is always an emotional reunion(Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)
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Despite being a city of just over 50,000 people, Villareal has punched above its weight for the past two decades with regular appearances in the latter stages of European competition.
They even won their first Europa League title in 2021. Through the highs and the lows, that familiar Fab Four riff has been a constant and fans will sure to give it a rendition tonight as the Submarino Amarillo returns to the city where it all started.