Soccer Spain LaLiga Prediction

Sevilla vs Celta Vigo - Match Preview

⚽ 7 April 2023 - 19:00 GMT +0

Sevilla have afforded themselves some crucial breathing space courtesy of a 2-0 win away to fellow relegation contender Cádiz that extended their gap from La Liga’s (LL) danger zone to four points. If they can get even further away and move closer to upcoming opponent Celta Vigo into a mid-table position, it’ll ensure they can throw everything they’ve got at Manchester United in this month’s UEFA Europa League quarter-final without putting their LL survival at stake.

It was the fifth time during his storied managerial career that José Luis Mendilibar won his first top-flight league game at a new club, having also done so at Eibar, Osasuna, Valladolid and Athletic Bilbao over a period of nearly 20 years. Not one to get ahead of himself after overseeing Eibar and Alavés’ relegations in 2021 and 2022, Mendilibar vowed a “game by game” approach and knows of the challenges of balancing multiple competitions. “Every win costs,” he told the media after defeating Cádiz.

Celta have not defeated a Mendilibar-led side in five attempts (D3, L2), but must fancy their chances of preventing a sixth after constructing their longest undefeated streak (W3, D3) of this LL season. On the flip side, recently failing to beat bottom-three Almería (2-2) at home was a missed opportunity to move alongside top-eight clubs Athletic and Vallecano on points, and in the process make a late-season charge for European football.

It has nonetheless been a very successful turnaround from 16th place at the start of Carlos Carvalhal’s tenure in November, with Celta operating consistently both at home (W3, D3, L2) and away (W3, D3, L1) in league football under his stewardship. They should therefore be confident of taking a point home from Seville just as they did last season (2-2), especially after conceding just one half-time lead from their last ten LL games.

📋 Players to watch: After opening the scoring last round, Sevilla’s Lucas Ocampos has now won his last nine goalscoring appearances in all competitions. Similarly, Gabri Veiga has scored before half-time in three LL wins since recording Celta’s only goal in the reverse H2H (D 1-1).

⚡ Hot stat: Just two of Mendilibar’s last 12 competitive meetings with Celta saw both teams score on the day.