The 2011-12 campaign was a season of ultimate heartbreak and dramatic collapse for Villarreal, as El Submarino Amarillo plummeted from Champions League football to a crushing 18th-place finish in La Liga, resulting in relegation to the second tier. Derailed by the massive mid-season injury to star striker Giuseppe Rossi and the sale of Santi Cazorla, the team, led in league scoring by Marco Ruben's 9 goals, struggled under three different managers. A final-day loss to Atlético Madrid sealed their devastating relegation, ending their top-flight streak and marking a painful but defining chapter in the club's modern history.