The Spanish La Liga is almost over, with just 2 game weeks left. This is the time for teams to give it a one final push, be it for European Qualification, the relegation battle, or the title. This two match preview will cover two matches that will take place on Sunday. The first match is Villareal CF vs Deportivo La Coruna. Deportivo will be looking forward for a win, because they just need 3 points to confirm their status in the Spanish La Liga next season, irrespective of other results. The other match is Real Sociedad vs Malaga CF. Sociedad will be going for a win, as they are 1 point behind the 5th placed Villareal, and hence, gun for European Qualification.
VILLAREAL CF vs. DEPORTIVO LA CORUNA
3-Way: 1: VILLAREAL CF -164; X: +359 Draw; 2: DEPORTIVO LA CORUNA +550
Spread -1: VILLAREAL CF -105; DEPORTIVO LA CORUNA +106
Total +2.5: Over -139; Under +129
VILLAREAL CF
This has indeed been a pretty good season for the Yellow Submarines. With 2 games to go, they still can finish in the top 4, provided they win both of their matches and Sevilla drop points in the next two matches of theirs. Villareal has surged up the table this season thanks to their decent attack, and a strong, reliable defense, and a good cohesion between all the players. It remains to be seen whether they can win their last two matches, and give Champions League qualifications a go.
Sitting on the 5th position of the Spanish La Liga, the Yellow Submarines have accumulated 69 points so far in the league. 36 of those have been one at home. Currently they are in a decent run of games. Their current record over the last 6 league games is 4-0-2. They have won 1, lost 1 game over their last two fixtures in the league.
Two weeks ago they won at home against Sporting Gijon by 3:1, which was followed by a humbling defeat by Barcelona where the score was 1:4 at the Camp Nou. The Yellow Submarine’s defensive solidity is further outlined by the fact that their most frequent score line this season has been a 0:0 draw, which has occurred 5 times this season.
They are a good team while going forward. They have talented players who can unlock defenses, with strikers who are decent finishers. They have scored 53 goals in the league, with 35 of them coming at home, which shows their home preferences. However, it is the defense which has really stood out. Conceding just 32 goals, they have the second best defense in the league. Villareal have also managed to keep an impressive 15 clean sheets in the league so far.
Cedric Bakambu has been the top scorer for the Yellow Submarines in this Spanish La Liga campaign. He has scored 11 goals in the league and also provided one assist. After him, its Roberto Soriano who has been providing attacking inspiration. The ex Spurs man has scored 9 goals, and made a team-high 5 assists. Goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo has managed to keep 11 clean sheets so far in the league, which is bettered by only three other keepers.
Unfortunately, their goalkeeper Asenjo is out for the season with a ligament injury. Other doubts for the weekend clash are Denis Cheryshev, Victor Torre, Bruno Soriano and Roberto Soldado, who all are yet to be checked by the medics before announcing their availability for the weekend match.
DEPORTIVO LA CORUNA
This has indeed been a poor season for Deportivo La Coruna, even by their standards. We had come to identify them as a mid-table club, but extremely poor performances mean that they are in relegation trouble, with at least 3 points needed to guarantee safety for the next season of the La Liga. However, with a subpar attack and a disoriented defense, it is looking highly unlikely, and that too after their opponents Villareal would be looking for a win for their own objectives, and are in a much better form.
Sitting near the relegation spots at 17th position of the Spanish La Liga, Deportivo has mustered 31 points so far. 22 of those points have been won at home, which shows how poor they have been on the road. They are in a terrible form in the league currently. Their record over the last six games is 1-1-4. They are winless in their last 4 games. Their last match was disappointing defeat at home against Espanyol. Before that, they drew away at Osasuna with the score being 2:2. Their regular dropping of points has been further emphasized by the fact that they have finished matches by the score of a 0:1 defeat, and a 1:1 draw, 5 times each.
They haven’t been very effective in front of the goal. They have managed to score only 39 goals in the Spanish La Liga till now, with 23 of them coming in front of the home crowd. Their defense isn’t any better. They have conceded a massive 60 goals so far, and they have managed to keep just 7 clean sheets. These statistics go a long way in showing why Deportivo are so low in the league placing.
Forward Florin Andone has tried his best in providing the team with attacking inspiration. He has managed 10 goals and 2 assists for the team in the league. Apart from him, Emre Colak has been doing his bit, as he has scored three goals and provided five assists. When it comes to assists, Juan Moreno is the one with the highest i.e., 6 assists to his name.
Forward Joselu is out for the season with an Achilles tendon injury, while Sidnei has returned to training after his groin injury.
VILLAREAL CF vs. DEPORTIVO LA CORUNA MATCH PREDICTION
This match looks to be the one where the teams have an equal chance of scoring. However, keeping in mind the home team has one of the meanest defenses of the Spanish La Liga, it will be quite a task to find a way through them.
Moreover, Deportivo La Coruna has a horrible defense, which will make it easier for Villareal to find a way through the backline and score. Therefore, my prediction will be a home win for Villareal, and probably even a clean sheet.
MY PICK: VILLAREAL CF (-164)
Additional Pick: Both teams to score NO (-115)
REAL SOCIEDAD vs. MALAGA CF
3-Way: 1: REAL SOCIEDAD -154; X: +348 Draw; 2: MALAGA CF +550
Spread -1: REAL SOCIEDAD +100; MALAGA CF -106
Total +2.5: Over -137; Under +140
REAL SOCIEDAD
So far, this season has been a pretty good one for Real Sociedad. They are tied on points with the 6th placed Bilbao, and are still in the hunt for a Europa League finish. If the teams directly above them slip up and falter, Sociedad has a very realistic chance of Eruopean qualifications. One must appreciate the attacking intent of their team, as they are never afraid to play their game with their own philosophy. This positive approach gave them a memorable 2:0 win against Atletico Madrid earlier this season.
They currently sit in 7th position of the Spanish La Liga table, with 62 points accrued so far. 34 of those points have been won in front of the home crowd. The current league record of the team makes a decent reading i.e., 4-1-1. They have been unbeaten in their last 4 matches. Two weeks ago, Sociedad defeated Granada at home with the end result being 2:1, and last weekend, they drew at Sevilla, 1:1. Their solid season is further underlined by the fact that they have won five matches with the score being 2:0.
Their surge up the table has been because of a good attacking unit, along with a decent backline that is capable of holding on to clean sheets. La Real has scored an impressive 55 goals in the Spanish La Liga, with only 4 teams scoring more. Not just their attack, but their defense helps too. Even though they have conceded 49 goals, they have still managed to keep 10 clean sheets.
Brazilian forward Willian Jose has scored 12 goals for la Real this campaign in the league, and also provided with 4 assists. Jimenez Lopez, and Carlos Vela, are two other players who have been helping with the goals, with 10 and 9 goals respectively. Mikel Oyarzabal leads the assists chart for the team, as has made 7 assists so far.
La Real has many players missing out due to injuries and suspensions. Imanol Agirretxe, Willian Jose, Markel Bergara and Carlos Vela, are all injury doubts for the weekend, with Carlos Martinex and Jon Guridi missing out for rest of the season. David Zurutuza is suspended for the match.
MALAGA CF
Another Spanish La Liga season comes to a close, and Malaga has put in decent effort to have a respectable mid-table finish. They still can finish 10th, if they win both of their matches and Alaves drop points in their next two. The Albiceleste have been very good in frustrating and taking points against the top teams, as they have done in three occasions against the current top 4 in the league. The main reason for their respectable results is their determination to not give up till the final whistle of the match, and keep going in the search of a goal, or to prevent the defense from conceding one.
As they are stationed in the 12th position of the Spanish La Liga table, they have collected 45 points till now. 32 of those points have been one in front of the home fans. They are in a pretty good form in the league, with their current record over the last 6 games being 5-0-1. They have put in very good performances in dismantling their last 2 opponents. First, they defeated Sevilla at home with a score of 4:2. This was followed by a 3:0 comfortable home win against adjacent side Celta Vigo, who were above them before the match. Their solidity and determination to grab points is highlighted by the fact that they have had drawn 5 matches with the final score being 1:1.
Interestingly, Malaga has a very average attack. They have scored only 47 goals so far in the Spanish La Liga, with 32 of them being at home, which suggests a scoring confidence at home. Similarly, even their defense doesn’t appear to be a very strong one. La Albiceleste have conceded 51 goals so far, with 23 of them being conceded at home. At the same time, they have managed to keep 8 clean sheets. We can conclude that the chances of a better performance are way more at home than away for Malaga.
Former Barcelona forward Sandro Ramirez has been the leader of the attacking pack this season in Malaga. He has scored an impressive 14 goals, and also popped up with 2 assists.
They have quite a few injury concerns for the clash. Bakary Kone is out for the season with an Achilles Tendon injury. Kuzmanovic, Robson Weligton, Carlos Kameni, Juanpi Anor, and Duda are all doubts for Sunday’s clash, as they are still not sure to have recovered from their various muscular injuries. Igancia Camacho is out for the match with suspension.
REAL SOCIEDAD vs. MALAGA CF MATCH PREDICTION
This match might as well turn out to be an interesting affair. None of the teams are defensively brilliant, but are more than capable of protecting the goal. However, Real Sociedad boasts a decent range of attacking players at their disposal.
With both sides in good form, this match will potentially be about who scores more goals. Keeping these factors in mind, my predication will be that both sides will score, and over the 2.5 goals.
MY PICK: Over 2.5 goals (-137)
Additional Pick: Both teams to score YES (-130)
