With the last three rounds of the Spanish La Liga left for this season, excitement levels are reaching extreme levels. Teams are fighting it out for the title, some for European finishes, while some are struggling to keep their head above the water and survive relegation. This weekend is the same, with two important matches coming up. The first match is when Deportivo Alaves welcome Athletic Bilbao to their stadium this Sunday, hoping to climb up a position from 10th to 9th. Later that day, Valencia will welcome Osasuna, hoping that their dismal season has some positive ending in the very least, at least for the fans, as they are languishing in the bottom half of the table.
DEPORTIVO ALAVES vs ATHELTIC BILBAO
3 way: 1: DEPORTIVO ALAVES +395; X: +280 Draw; 2: ATHLETIC BILBAO -114
Spread +0.5: DEPORTIVO ALAVES +110; ATHLETIC BILBAO -121
Total +2.5: Over: +120; Under: -120
DEPORTIVO ALAVES
When Deportivo Alaves gained promotion to the Spanish La Liga at the end of the last campaign, almost everyone thought that they will struggle a lot, and maybe even get relegated again. Not many would have foreseen their current position. They sit in 10th position in the Spanish La Liga, and if all the results go their way, they might even finish as high as the 8th position in the league. That shows how well their season is going, keeping in mind they were in the second tier last season.
Having accrued 48 points this season, they are having a firm grip on the 10th position in the league. Of those 48 points, 23 have been won at home. Their current home record over the last 6 games is a decent reading, 3-2-1. They are undefeated in the last 4 matches. Their last two results were: a 0:0 draw at home against Eibar, followed by a thumping 4:1 victory against Real Betis, away. The most common result for Alaves is 0:0, which has occurred 6 times in the league for them. This shows that even though they are not really lethal in scoring goals, they surely can prevent conceding at times.
Saying that Alaves are not really efficient in scoring goals is an understatement. They have scored just 36 goals in the league, just 3 more than Leo Messi has to himself, before this Round. Even after scoring so less, they occupy a safe 10th position. That is partly due to the reason that they have a decent defense. Even though they have conceded 41 goals, they have managed to shut out opponents many times, as shown by the fact that they have 11 clean sheets to their name.
Forward Deyverson Acosta, leads his team in number of goals scored, with 6, while also contributing with 2 assists. Defender Theo Hernandez has 3 assists to his name. These stats show how poor the club has been in an attacking sense. However defensively, it’s a different story. Their goalkeeper Fernando Pacheco has 10 clean sheets to his name, only 5 other goalkeepers have collected more clean sheets.
When it comes to injuries and suspensions, Alaves has a few areas of concern. Einar Galilea will miss the entire season due a to a cruciate ligament injury. Carlos Vigaray is back in training, but Victor Languardia, Theo Hernandez, and Sergio Llamas are doubtful for the match with leg injuries.
ATHLETIC BILBAO
Athletic Bilbao has made quite a good reputation in the Spanish La Liga. Even though the club couldn’t really challenge at the top of the table throughout the season, they were strong enough to cause any team trouble, including the league leaders. They are tied on the 6th position with Real Sociedad, but with an extra game in hand. They will want to finish the season with at least a Europe league spot guaranteed, by finishing in the top 6.
Tied on 6th position with 62 points, Bilbao still have a game in hand, which could prove very vital come the end of the season. Of the 62 points, 42 have been won at home, which shows that they are much better at their home stadium than in away matches. They are on a 4 match winning streak in the Spanish La Liga. Their last result was a 3:0 road victory over Celta Viga. The most common result for them this season has been a 2:1 win, which has occurred 7 times so far.
They can score a decent amount of goals, which is obvious with experienced strikers like Aritz Aduriz in their ranks. They have scored a total of 51 goals this season, 35 of them coming at home. They have the 4th best defense in the league. They have conceded only 38 goals, while also keeping 10 clean sheets.
Towering striker Aduriz is their top scorer in their league, with an impressive 15 strikes so far. Only 5 players have scored more than him, and he has also laid on 2 assists. Benat Etxebarria leads the assists charts for Bilbao with 5 assists to his name. Keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga has kept 7 clean sheets so far.
Athletic Bilbao are relatively safer when it comes to players missing out due to injuries. Aitor Seguin and Alex Remiro are back in training, with only Raul Garcia being a major doubt.
DEPORTIVO ALAVES vs ATHELTIC BILBAO MATCH PREDICTION
This clash will have more impact on Athletic Bilbao’s season than the home team’s. Deportivo Alaves will still try to put up a good performance, but they will not be disappointed with the way the season has been going even if they lose this one.
Even though Bilbao isn’t really very strong on the road, they will still nick this one due to a slight edge when it comes to quality and experience. My prediction will be an away win for Athletic Bilbao. The two teams have combined more than 3 goals only once in their last 5 meetings in the Spanish La Liga. Therefore I will take the under as well!!!
MY PICK: Athletic Bilbao (-114)
TOTAL: Under 2.5 goals (-120)
VALENCIA CF vs CA OSASUNA
3-way: 1: VALENCIA -333; X: +600 Draw; 2: OSASUNA +1400
Spread -1.5: VALENCIA -125; OSASUNA +138
TOTAL +3.5: Over +104; Under -111
VALENCIA CF
By the way the season is coming to end, it will be safe to say that this has been one of the most disappointing seasons in the recent memory of the Los Che. Languishing in the bottom half of the table, at the 13th spot of the Spanish La Liga, the highest they can finish this season is 10th, that too if all the other matches of the nearest rivals go according to the benefit of the yellow submarines. Valencia CF is a club usually residing in the top half of the league table, but the poor start to the 2016/2017 season set the tone for a difficult campaign ahead.
Having accrued just 40 points in 35 games, they sit at 14th position in the Spanish La Liga, which is quite disappointing by the club’s standards. Of the 40 points, 24 have been won at home. Their current home record over the last 6 games is 3-2-1. Of their last two games, they lost both. A 2:3 home defeat against Real Sociedad was followed by an away defeat to Real Madrid, with the final score being 2:1. Their most common score line this season has been a 2:1 win and a 2:1 loss, both happening twice.
They have scored 50 goals this season, with 27 coming in their home stadium. Their defense has been woeful this season, with 61 goals conceded, and only 6 clean sheets kept. These stats highlight how poor a season the Los Che are having.
Santiago Lorenzo is their top scorer this season so far with 6 goals, along with 2 assists. Valencia is currently not really troubled by many injuries. Defender Aymen Abdennour, who is recovering from a thigh injury, and Diego Alves, who is having a shoulder injury, are the only players who are a doubt for the clash this weekend.
CA OSASUNA
This has indeed been a poor season for the club. The fans are broken to see their team going down to the Segunda division, as it has been confirmed that they will be relegated come the end of this season, and hence won’t play in the Spanish La Liga next season. A woeful attack, with a porous defense, and a lack of experience made it a difficult journey throughout the campaign.
Sitting in the bottom of the league table, Osasuna has been able to accumulate only 19 points this season. The highest they can finish now, is the 19th position. Their current record over the last six games is 2-2-2. They lost 1, drew 1 of their last two games. A 7:1 away humiliation to Barcelona FC, was followed by a 2:2 draw against Deportivo La Coruna. Their most common result this season has been a 3:0 defeat, which has occurred 5 times. This shows how they have been incapable of handling the pressure of the top flight campaign.
They have scored 37 goals only so far in the season, which is better than only 2 teams in the league. 21 of those goals have been scored at home. Their defense has been horrible to say the least. They have conceded 84 goals, keeping just 2 clean sheets in the process. 38 of those goals have been conceded in front of the home fans.
Sergio Leon has been their top scorer this league season, scoring a total of 10 goals in the league so far, followed by Roberto Torres, who has scored 7, and assisted 3 goals.
The real concern comes from the medical department, with a huge number of players involved with injuries. Didier Digard, Miguel Flano, and Tano Bonnin are all out for the season. Imanol Garcia, Emmanuel Riviere, David Garcia, and Fran Merida are all major doubts for this game. The only positives are the Raoul loe, Oriol Riera, and Nikola Vujadinovic are back in training, and hence could feature in the match. Oier Sanjurju is suspended for the match.
VALENCIA CF vs CA OSASUNA MATCH PREDICTION
Considering the fact that both teams are having less than an acceptable seasons, it has the possibility of being a dull match. However, Valencia has seen an upturn in their performances, which was shown last week, as they lost only to a late goal by defender Marcelo. Therefore, it will be safe to say that Valencia could win this match. However, both teams have been combining for a lot of goals over their most recent performances, which sets up a potential high scoring match-up. In addition to taking the over, I expect both teams to score at least one goal.
My pick: Over 3.5 goals (+104)
Additional Pick: Both teams to score YES (-116)
