The closing game of the Spanish La Liga eight round between Las Palmas and Celta Vigo is set for this Monday, October 16th, 2017, at Estadio Gran Canaria. We expect to see an entertaining match with a lot of excitement, and in this preview, we would like to take a closer look at these two teams. Stay tuned, and find all interesting tips you will need here on GetMoreSports, as well as our betting predictions for this derby clash.
LAS PALMAS vs. CELTA VIGO
3-Way: 1: Las Palmas +154; X: +252 Draw; 2: Celta Vigo +210
Spread 0: Las Palmas -128; Celta Vigo +125
Total +2.5: Over -118; Under +110
LAS PALMAS
La UD is struggling from the start of the La Liga campaign, trying to find their last year’s form. After seven rounds Las Palmas is sitting at the 17th place of the table with six points, a 5:13 goal difference and a form of LLLWWLL. Their heads are just above the water, and they will need to do a much better job in the following rounds if they want to fulfill fans expectations. La UD even changed the manager, but it doesn’t look like things are going in the right direction.
Las Palmas lost three games in a row against Barcelona, Leganes, and Sevilla without scoring a single goal, while conceding six times. Obviously, they need to improve their finishing, as they’ve failed to find the net from 17 chances created in these three encounters. For example, one of the club’s best players Jonathan Viera created 17 chances for his teammates in seven apps without a single assist. The only guy with at least two dishes to his name is a left-back Dani Castellano, who’s unavailable currently due to a hamstring injury.
On the other side, Las Palmas has some problems with a defensive work, too. They’ve conceded 13 goals in seven games, keeping the clean sheet only against Athletic Bilbao at home in the fourth round of the Spanish La Liga. They are recording 36 defensive actions per game, winning just 36% of tackles and 40% of aerial duels. Both defensive errors led to a goal, so they need to be more focused if they want to defend better.
In the previous round against Barca at Camp Nou Las Palmas had a nice first half, successfully keeping their net intact. The goalkeeper Leandro Chichizola, who joined the club from Spezia Calcio this summer, was impressive with some brilliant stops against Lionel Messi and his teammates. In the 43rd minute, Las Palmas had a great chance to get a lead, but Jonathan Calleri’s shot hit the post, while Barca’s keeper could just watch the ball.
In the 49th minute, Barca took the lead, after Messi’s corner and Busquets’ header. It is pretty inadmissible to allow Barcelona to score after a cross from the corner, and the left-back Borja Herrera did a lousy job on Busquets. Just two minutes later Las Palmas had a good opportunity to level the match, but Oussama Tannane’s left-foot shot went wide of the right post. After Messi’s first goal of the game in the 70th minute, there was no way back for Las Palmas’ players, who only managed to concede the third goal until the end.
The manager Pako Ayestaran will have to work with his players on almost every aspect of the game, while he has some serious problems with injured players among the squad. Alen Halilovic will be sidelined for at least two months due to a malleolar injury. Loic Remy is doubtful due to a wound, and everyone is impatient to see him on the pitch again. Vitolo and Dani Castellano are doubtful, too, both with a hamstring injury.
CELTA VIGO
Celta Vigo is another team in the Spanish La Liga with some unconvincing displays from the start of the season. The Sky Blues are laying at the 11th spot of the table after the first seven rounds with eight points, a 13:11 goal difference and a form of DWDLWLL. The fans are certainly expecting more from their beloved club, who played in Europa League last season. This year’s aspiration is to catch the Europa spot once again, but they will need much better performance if they want to succeed.
Celta’s form is so unpredictable, as they’ve earned five points at home out of the four games, playing a draw in the last two encounters with Girona, 3:3, and Getafe, 1:1. In both matches, Celta Vigo was a favorite to win. On the road, they recorded one victory (over Eibar, 4:0), and two defeats (against Espanyol and Betis with the same result, 2:1).
In the previous round, Celta allowed three goals to Girona in front of the home fans. A poor defensive job certainly frustrated the manager Juan Carlos Unzue, who has to be furious especially after Girona’s equalizing goal in the 86th minute when the defensive line was completely out of focus. Celta Vigo dropped another two points at home, making some amateur faults.
The striker Maximiliano Gomez, who arrived from Uruguayan side Defensor Sporting Club this summer, is leading the club’s scoring chart with six goals in seven appearances, proving he’s going to be a great reinforcement in the final third. The winger Pione Sisto is another key player with two goals and four dishes so far on his account. Iago Aspas is still looking for his best form, as he’s goalless after seven apps with just one assist to his name.
Juan Carlos Unzue will have some problems to field his best eleven against Las Palmas on Monday, as Maximiliano Gomez will have to miss the clash due to a yellow card suspension. Hugo Mallo and Facundo Roncaglia are both suffering from a hamstring injury, while Nemanja Radoja is still sidelined with knee problems.
LAS PALMAS vs. CELTA VIGO – Match Prediction
These two teams played a couple of exciting matches in the previous La Liga campaign, as Celta Vigo won at home, 3:1, while it was a 3:3 draw at Estadio Gran Canaria. Their last eight H2H encounters were finished in the over, and I expect to see more of the same this year. Both teams need a positive result to build self-confidence after a bad start of the season, so I’m looking to see some goals on both sides. However, choosing a winner should be a quite difficult task.
MY PICK: Both Teams to Score YES (-145)
ADDITIONAL PICK: Over 2,5 goals (-118)
