Deportivo Alaves vs Getafe
Estadio de Mendizzoroza, Vitoria-Gastiez
Monday, 13-07-2020 @8:30pm
Ref: Pablo Gonzalez
Champions League football may not be out of the question for Getafe but they are on course to qualify for Europe’s subsidiary competition and can consolidate their top-six position by beating strugglers Alaves at the Mendizorroza.
Getafe were among the contenders for a top-four berth when the season was postponed but after winning only one of their eight matches since the league’s resumption, they now look set for Europa League football.
With four of their last seven matches finishing as stalemates against Espanyol, Eibar, Real Valladolid and Osasuna, a lack of end product has been central to their problems, but they should not have too many issues breaching Alaves.
The hosts have lost seven of eight league assignments since the restart, conceding at least two goals in five of those games.
That run also featured a 6-0 capitulation away to Celta Vigo, a side who have spent most of the season in the bottom half, and they have shipped 53 goals in their 35 league assignments in 2019/20.
Getafe’s primary striker Jaime Mata has gone through a bit of a dry spell of late and should see this game as an excellent opportunity to get on the scoresheet against one of the division’s most permeable clubs.
And Alaves do not offer much more at the other end of the pitch, with only three players in their squad having scored more than once this season – Lucas Perez (11), Joselu (ten) and Aleix Vidal (two).
They have consequently drawn blanks in five of their last six matches in La Liga and that does not bode well against a Getafe outfit, whose recent success has been built around a solid defence.
Villarreal vs Real Sociedad
Estadio de la Ceramica, Villarreal
Monday, 13-07-2020 @8:30pm
Ref: Guillermo Cuadra
Villarreal and Real Sociedad have gone in opposite directions in the La Liga standings since the season’s resumption and their meeting at El Madrigal could be key in the context of the race for European football.
When the season was postponed in Spain, Real Sociedad were fourth and on course for Champions League football whilst Villarreal were eighth, seven points off the top six.
The Yellow Submarine are now nestled in fifth spot while Real Sociedad have dropped down to seventh and the Basque side are worth opposing when considering the formbook.
Villarreal have won six of their previous eight league matches, claiming the scalps of Valencia, Real Betis and Getafe and holding Sevilla to a draw as part of that run.
Real Sociedad, meanwhile, have lost to Alaves, Celta Vigo and, most recently, Granada, since returning to action. Their most recent defeat was an example of them not taking their chances, as they fell to a 3-2 defeat despite winning the shot count 15-4 and seeing 64 per cent of the ball.
That indicates they are still creating opportunities and in Mikel Oyarzabal, Willian Jose and Alexander Isak they have players who could cause damage in the final third.
They have netted 53 goals in their 35 league matches this season and, although they are worth opposing, they can get on the scoresheet.
They have scored in three of their last four losses and a good match prediction could be Villarreal to win and both teams to score, a bet which has clicked on eight occasions in La Liga this campaign.
Granada vs Real Madrid
Estadio Nuevo Los Carmenes, Granada
Monday, 13-07-2020 @11pm
Ref: Santiago Jaime
Real Madrid are in touching distance of the La Liga title but face a potential banana skin contest away to a Granada side who still have hopes of landing a European berth this season.
Zinedine Zidane’s men have been irrepressible since the league’s resumption, winning their last nine successive league matches and having lost only two of their previous 26 encounters.
They have not conceded in any of their previous five games while the fact marksman Karim Benzema scooped the La Liga Player of the Month award for June reiterates they are not short of quality at the other end of the pitch either.
It would therefore be an incredibly bold move to oppose them as they close in on a first top-flight title since 2017, even against Granada, who have caused some of the league’s elite problems this season.
Granada have been one of the league’s surprise packages, winning 14 of their 35 league games and having been in the mix for a top-seven spot for most of the season, despite only gaining promotion last term.
Under the stewardship of Diego Martinez, they have beaten the likes of Barcelona, Getafe and, most recently, Real Sociedad this season as well as making light work of the division’s lesser lights.
They pushed Real Madrid in their 4-2 defeat in the reverse fixture earlier in the season and have a handful of exciting players in the final third, including Antonio Puertas, veteran Roberto Soldado and Carlos Fernandez.
Spanish La Liga weekend’s results
Saturday, 11-07-2020
-Osasuna 2-1 Celta Vigo
-Real Valladolid 0-1 Barcelona
-Atletico Madrid 1-0 Real Valladolid
Sunday, 12-07-2020
-Espanyol 0-2 Eibar
-Levante 1-2 Athletic Bilbao
-Leganes 1-0 Valencia
-Sevilla 2-0 Real Mallorca
