Villareal vs Alaves is an important meeting for both teams. The hosts are trying to escape from the dangerous area, and Alaves is looking for a European position, if it is even the Champions League. The game is scheduled on Saturday, 17.15 on Estadio de la Ceramica.
Villareal: current form, latest results, statistics
Villareal lost only one of the last four games, but these results have not yet escaped him from the dangerous area. It occupies a retrograde position, the 18th, but managed to reduce to only two points away from the safety zone.
For Villareal there are several vital weeks for the fate of the team. It begins with the meeting with Alaves, one of La Liga’s strong teams. Then, after only a week, she moves to Valencia to meet Levante. Only between these matches will have to go to Russia to meet Zenit in the Europa League.
In the second part of March will come the most important matches, with Rayo Vallecano and Celta Vigo, direct opponents in the fight to avoid relegation. I stayed at the parade that he had to give up the Europa League, a competition that confused him pretty much during this period.
Let’s look at the last 5 results:
- 08.02.19 Valladolid vs Villareal 0-0
- 14.02.19 Sporting Lisbon vs Villareal 0-1 (Europa League)
- 17.02.19 Villareal vs Sevilla 3-0
- 21.02.19 Villareal vs Sporting 1-1 (Europa League)
- 24.02.19 Atletico Madrid vs Villareal 2-0
Javier Calleja returned to the team with the clear idea of improving the defensive. After the first 4 matches, the safety is displayed, except for the match with Espanyol. There we saw flagrant mistakes that led to the loss of two important points in this fierce battle.
Even if a move shows a drop in the offensive area, precisely because of those defensive requirements, in the meetings at home scored 5 times in the two games played. It is a satisfying result for this first balance of the new and at the same time the old coach.
Carlos Bacca, Gerard Moreno and Karl Toko Ekambi, with 4 goals scored, are the main teammates. The three are routed in the attack on the “yellow submarine”, but none has succeeded in imposing itself as an indispensable holder.
Alaves: Current form, latest results, statistics
Alaves managed to balance in this return by managing 3 consecutive matches without defeat. It only got 5 points out of 9 possible. However, he managed to keep his sixth position in the leaderboard, closer than ever to the Champions League (only 2 points).
And for the visiting team is an important time because it has some easier meetings with Villareal, Eibar and Huesca. Only then will the very difficult meetings with Atletico Madrid and Sevilla come back. There are good chances to achieve the best performance in the history of the club, a first presence in the most important competition in Europe.
Results from the last 5 meetings:
- 28.01.19 Alaves vs Rayo Vallecano 0-1
- 03.02.19 Real Madrid vs Alaves 3-0
- 11.02.19 Alaves vs Levante 2-0
- 17.02.19 Betis vs Alaves 1-1
- 23.02.19 Alaves vs Celta Vigo 0-0
Lately, Abelardo has changed the tactical system for a 4-4-2 formation with 4-3-3. In the Celta match from the previous round, it was for the fourth consecutive time when he used this formula. It was initially thought to be used only against teams with a strong offensive, such as Real Madrid or Betis Sevilla, only using the same system and Celta shows us that it has become a habit.
That movement was operated after Alaves lost to Ibai Gomez and Ruben Sabrino in January. The remaining places were occupied by Japanese Takashi Inui and Borja Baston. The latter, together with Jony and Jonathan Calleri, are the scorers of the team with 4 goals scored. Only for Calleri 761 minutes have passed since the last goal.
Tomas Pina, the architect of Alaves’ game, is injured on the right foot and there are little chances to evolve with Villareal. The midfielder did not finish the training session on Tuesday, and the medical staff does not want to force a quick but risky recovery.
Villareal vs Alaves: Direct Matches
In the last five direct meetings Alaves won four times, twice on Ceramica, and Villareal only once. It should be noted that there is not even a result of equality during this period.
Villareal vs Alaves Picks
For Villareal the situation is extremely clear, he is no longer allowed to lose points in the matches at home. Saturday will have quite a difficult meeting, but we have seen a growing game and confidence since the arrival of Javier Calleja. My bet will go to the home team, trying to get some coverage in the event of a tie.
Prediction Today: Under 3.5
Odds: 1.57
