The closing game of La Liga’s 26th round puts Villarreal against Espanyol in a battle of the opposites. The former is 5th and actively involved in the battle for the continental spots from the league, while the latter is just 3 points away from the relegation zone and needs to get the win here to widen the gap.
Villarreal Team News
The Yellow Submarine missed out on European football this season because they finished 8th in the last edition of La Liga, but this might have been a blessing in disguise for them. Villarreal looks almost certain about booking continental football next season, but the question remains whether they can manage to displace Bilbao for the last UCL spot, keep the 5th, and play the Europa League next season or possibly drop down to the Conference League. At any rate, the team is on a 6-game unbeaten streak in La Liga, managing to win 4 matches in that period. Three of those produced over 2.5 goals. Looking at Villarreal’s home matches, we can see that 3 of their last 5 such games also produced over 2.5 goals. However, their defence continues to be leaky as Marcelino’s side has just 3 clean sheets throughout the season, a joint-low for La Liga.
Espanyol Team News
Espanyol faces the real threat of relegation and will be determined to collect points from their encounter with Villarreal. The Parakeets, however, are not in a good travelling form as they have managed to pick up just 1 away win in La Liga this season. Espanyol has also accumulated just 5 points in their away matches with the worst record being Valladolid’s with 3. That one victory did come during their last match on the road, however, so it could be a sign of better things to come. Still, Espanyol’s issues on the road have been made apparent throughout the season and to add to that – the team holds the joint worst record for scored goals on away matches with just 7 to their name.
Head-to-Head-Games
Villarreal boast the advantage in the H2H as they have 4 wins to their name across the last 5 games with Espanyol. The latter’s last victory came in 2020, interestingly enough at the Estadio de la Cerámica. All of the last 5 games here between Villarreal and Espanyol produced over 2.5 goals, with 4 even going as far as over 3.5, in addition to every game seeing goals from both sides as well.
| Rank | Teams | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goal difference | Points | Current form |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Villarreal CF | 30 | 14 | 9 | 7 | 13 | 51 | LLWDW |
| Rank | Teams | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goal difference | Points | Current form |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | RCD Espanyol | 30 | 9 | 8 | 13 | -7 | 35 | DLDWW |
Villarreal – Espanyol Betting Prediction
I will go for goals here and select over 2.5 goals. Matches between Villarreal and Espanyol at the Estadio de la Cerámica tend to produce a lot of goals as evidenced by recent H2Hs here. Moreover, Villarreal is a team that leaks goals regularly, although they do manage to make up for that in attacking prowess. Espanyol’s recent win away from home might galvanize them to push hard and try to capitalize on that momentum, even if their trips to Estadio de la Cerámica haven’t been successful in recent years.
The Parakeets’ threat of relegation is real and every point will help in that battle. Meanwhile, The Yellow Submarine will probably be eyeing the 4th spot, granting UCL football next season with a win over Espanyol and bringing them within touching distance of just 1 point to Bilbao.
For me, all of those factors align with my expectation for goals in this game.
Betting Tip: Over 2.5 Goals
Bookmaker: Stake
Odds: 1.67
Stake
Place your bet on Villarreal – Espanyol at Stake