The Matchday 23 La Liga clash between Villarreal vs Espanyol will take place on 9 February at the Estadio de la Ceramica. Villarreal vs Espanyol: prediction, betting odds and statistics.
Villarreal
One week ago, the club shared the points away to Osasuna (2:2), thereby extending their winless run in La Liga to three matches (one draw, two defeats). Villarreal had not endured such a spell since November–December 2024. The drop-off has been fairly sharp, given that prior to this the side had won eight of their previous nine league matches. As a result, the gap to leaders Barcelona has grown to 16 points. However, third place is still only three points away, and Villarreal also have a game in hand.
- In this season’s La Liga, the club have scored 39 goals in total, with only Real Madrid (47) and Barcelona (63) scoring more.
- The team’s uncompromising home run in this competition stands at six matches (four wins, two defeats).
- Villarreal have failed to keep a clean sheet in six La Liga matches.
Potential Villarreal Lineup (4-4-2)*
Luiz Junior – Santiago Mourino, Alfonso Pedraza, Rafa Marin, Renato Veiga – Nicolas Pepe, Daniel Parejo, Pape Gueye, Alberto Moleiro – Gerard Moreno, Georges Mikautadze.
Defender Alfonso Pedraza is serving a suspension. Due to injuries, defenders Juan Foyth and Logan Costa, as well as forwards Alfonso Gonzalez and Pau Cabanes, will be unavailable. The participation of forwards Gerard Moreno and Ayoze Perez is in doubt.
Espanyol
Espanyol are also going through a serious slump. Ahead of the trip to Villarreal, the side have now gone five straight La Liga matches without a win, with four of those five games ending in defeat. Not long ago, however, the club produced their best run of the 21st century by winning five consecutive matches in La Liga. In the previous round, they lost at home to Alaves (1:2), and the result saw them drop out of fifth place in the standings. The club now sit sixth, one point behind Real Betis, and there is also a whole group of rivals closing in from below.
- Espanyol have conceded in six consecutive matches in the Spanish top flight.
- The Catalans’ scoring run away from home in this competition has reached seven games.
- At least two goals have been scored in each of the club’s last six La Liga matches.
Potential Espanyol Lineup (4-4-2)*
Marko Dmitrovic – Fernando Calero, Leandro Cabrera, Carlos Romero, Clemens Riedel – Urko Gonzalez, Edu Exposito, Jofre Carreras, Ramon Terrats – Kike Garcia, Roberto Fernandez.
Captain Javi Puado is unavailable due to injury.
Villarreal vs Espanyol: Match Prediction
The two sides come into the game in poor spirits, but Espanyol’s problems look more serious. The Catalans have gone five La Liga rounds without a win, taking just one point during that spell. Since the second half of January, they have suffered three consecutive league defeats. At such a moment, the club now face a tricky away trip to an awkward opponent. Espanyol have lost each of their last six La Liga head-to-head meetings with Villarreal, and the last time the Catalans took any points at all was back in 2021.
Villarreal’s current winless run in La Liga has only reached three matches (one draw, two defeats), and it is worth adding that at home during this spell the club slipped up against Real Madrid (0:2). In general, the hosts are always dangerous at their own ground, winning 12 of their previous 15 matches in the Spanish top flight.
Prediction: Villarreal to win
* For each team, the starting lineup from their last match in this competition is listed.
