On Friday, we can expect several truly phenomenal matches across Europe, and in our opinion, probably the most interesting one will be played in San Sebastian where Real Sociedad will host Villarreal. The start of the match between these two teams is scheduled for 9 PM.
Real Sociedad: Good performances in the Champions League, but very poor in La Liga!
We have mentioned several times in our analyses of Real Sociedad that last season was commendable as the team managed to secure fourth place in the table and direct qualification to the Champions League, which was undoubtedly a long-term goal of the club. Speaking of this competition, it’s worth noting that in a group with Inter, Benfica, and Salzburg – a not at all naive group – the Spanish representative secured the first place, admittedly with the same number of points as Inter. These two teams decided in the final round at Giuseppe Meazza who would advance to the knockout phase from the top position, and the Spanish team managed to withstand the Nerazzurri, as the duel in Milan ended somewhat unexpectedly without a winner, and without goals.
The draw was ruthless, as Real Sociedad got PSG in the round of 16. The first match between these two teams was played about ten days ago, and then the Parisians won relatively easily with a 2:0 score. However, one should not forget that the return match at Anoeta, which will surely be filled to the last seat, is yet to come. Either way, the impression is that we expected much more from Real Sociedad in this year’s edition of the Spanish La Liga, and as things stand, it is almost certain that we will not see this team in Europe’s top club competition next season. Currently, Imanol Alguacil’s team is in sixth place in the table, trailing the fourth-placed Atletico Madrid by eleven points. In the last five matches, the former Spanish Cup winner achieved two victories, two draws, but also suffered a defeat, recently at home against Osasuna with a 0:1 score.
In the previous round, Real Sociedad finally played a good match and managed to win at the challenging visit to Mallorca, with a 2:1 score, all thanks to Merino’s goal in the third minute of injury time. Additionally, it’s worth reminding that prior to this, the team from Anoeta had tied five matches not only without a win but also without scoring a goal, which perhaps best shows how much the Spanish representative in this year’s Champions League edition has been struggling lately. Finally, regarding home performances, the sixth-placed team has played twelve matches so far, achieving five victories, the same number of draws, and only two losses.
Villarreal: We Expected Much More from the Yellow Submarine!
Not so long ago, Villarreal won the Europa League trophy after triumphing over Manchester United, and last season, the popular Yellow Submarine finished in a fantastic fifth place in the table, just seven points behind the fourth-placed Real Sociedad, whom Villarreal is visiting this round. All this brought the team direct qualification to the second-tier European club competition, and speaking of the Europa League, it’s worth noting that the Spanish representative finished the group stage in an excellent first place in the table, one point ahead of the second-placed Rennes. It was certainly one of the highest-quality groups in this year’s edition of the Europa League, as besides these two teams, there were also Panathinaikos and Maccabi Haifa, who played in the Champions League last season.
Overall, everyone in the club is very satisfied with the Yellow Submarine’s performances in the second-tier club competition, however, it’s realistic to say that we expected much more from this team in La Liga. Currently, Villarreal is in a dismal thirteenth place in the table, but with a nine-point lead over the relegation zone teams, so it seems that survival will not be questioned, which is certainly the most important, regardless of the fact that the team from Estadio de la Cerámica has much higher ambitions. In the last five league matches, Villarreal interestingly has not known defeat, during which the team drew four times and won once, that being in an away game against Barcelona.
That was a duel in which we saw eight goals, and in the end, Villarreal celebrated a 5-3 victory in the final stages of the match, which was undoubtedly a big surprise, especially since the Yellow Submarine has not been flourishing this season, and generally, this team rarely beats the Catalans. In the previous round, the thirteenth-placed team only drew at home against Getafe, with the match ending in a 1-1 result. For most of that encounter, the former Europa League winner was the better team on the field, but it must be admitted that a bit of luck was missing in the end, as the home team missed several very good opportunities to score.
Away from home, the Yellow Submarine has played twelve matches and achieved only three victories, four draws, and five losses, noting that Villarreal has not suffered defeat in the last two away games. The first was in the already mentioned duel against Barcelona, and the second time away at the challenging Alaves in the Basque Country, with that match ending in a 1-1 draw.
Our Betting Suggestions
First of all, it is known how Real Sociedad has been playing lately, and mostly these are matches with a small number of goals, so this time we boldly recommend that you try the bet Total UNDERÂ 2.5 Goals for which the bookmaker betBonanza has prepared odds of 1.77.
Villarreal has managed to play some exceptionally good matches away from home this season, and the latest example of this is the victory over Barcelona with a score of 3:5, so it is very possible that the Yellow Submarine can also withstand at Real Sociedad, which is why we advise you to try the Double Chance X2 for which betBonanza has set odds of 2.10.
Finally, perhaps the most realistic option for this duel at Anoeta is to opt for the combination of bets X2 and Total UNDERÂ 3.5 Goals which the bookmaker betBonanza pays with fantastic odds of 2.40.
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