Soccer Spain LaLiga Prediction

Valladolid vs Barcelona - Match Preview

⚽ 24 May 2023 - 17:30 GMT +0

With European football for next season in the bag, it’s now just a matter of deciding which competition Villarreal will be playing in. The UEFA Champions League or UEFA Europa League awaits the Yellow Submarine, and with four wins from their last five La Liga (LL) outings, Villarreal appears well-placed to pounce upon any slip-ups by fourth-placed Real Sociedad.

Interestingly, three of the four wins in that sequence came on home turf, so Villarreal will likely be glad of a swift return to Estadi de la Ceràmica after their 2-1 weekend victory over Girona to keep the good times rolling. Having never tasted a home defeat against Cádiz (W5, D2), Villarreal ought to be confident of extending their three-match winning home league run, but considering they haven’t run up four successive LL home victories since late 2020, they have a psychological obstacle to overcome.

Cádiz will certainly be in no mood to roll over for Villarreal, as their battle to beat the LL drop intensifies. A 2-0 victory over relegation rivals Real Valladolid on Friday served as a huge boost to their survival hopes, meaning they come into this midweek round three points clear of the drop zone, but by no means will they feel safe yet, even if they are only one point shy of the 39 points that kept them up last season.

Only one side in the six LL seasons prior has gone down with Cádiz’s current points total of 38, but with a wretched run of just one win in nine LL away games (D3, L5), five of which saw them fail to score, Sergio’s men may find themselves pe at over their shoulder again come to the end of this round of fixtures.

📋 Players to watch: A fan of having the final say on proceedings, Étienne Capoue has scored the game’s final goal in two of Villarreal’s last four home league games. Cádiz’s hero against Valladolid, Théo Bongonda, has opened the scoring in all three of his scoring appearances this season.

⚡ Hot stat: Villarreal has scored ten goals beyond the 75th minute in LL home action this term, a league-high ahead of the first round.