Alaves vs Real Sociedad match preview and predictions for Sunday’s LaLiga match. Read on for the head-to-head, team news and predicted lineups ahead of this Basque derby in Vitoria.
- DATE: Sunday 6th December 2020
- KICK-OFF: 21:00 (local time)
- VENUE: Mendizorrotza
- COMPETITION: LaLiga
Alaves vs Real Sociedad Preview
There’s a Basque derby in Vitoria this weekend as Real Sociedad travel to face Alaves. The visitors have had a below par week and Imanol faces a real selection dilemma here with tiredness mounting and a big Europa League game in Naples coming up on Thursday.
This is a tougher match for La Real than it would have been a few weeks back too. Alaves have found some form and are starting to look like an awkward team to play against under Pablo Machin. They produced some terrific counter-attacking football last week to surprisingly win 2-1 at Real Madrid. Joselu and Lucas Perez, their dynamic strike duo from last season, both performed well and both got on the scoresheet to stun Los Blancos.
That win made it five matches unbeaten in LaLiga for Machin’s team. Despite that they have still only recorded one home win so far this term at Mendizorrotza, and they’ll need to improve on that kind of return if they are going to steer clear of the relegation scrap.
As for Real Sociedad, they’ve played some terrific football this season but it has been a challenging week. Their six game winning streak in LaLiga came to an end with a 1-1 draw at home to Villarreal last Sunday, although that was enough to keep them in top spot. However they could only draw 2-2 at home to Rijeka in a game they were strongly expected to win on Thursday in the Europa League.
As a result, La Real now have to win away to Napoli to guarantee progress in their final group game this coming Thursday. That will not be easy and it leaves Imanol with a genuine conundrum as to whether he should rest players here and keep them fresh for that match. Given all their cup commitments and their strong start in LaLiga, perhaps the time has come to prioritise in what could turn into a genuinely special season for the San Sebastian club.
Check out our match previews for every game in LaLiga this weekend here!
Head to Head
- Last 6 Competitive Meetings: 2 Alaves Wins, 4 Real Sociedad Wins.
- Both sides last season resulted in home wins to nil.
- Real Sociedad won 3-0 at Anoeta while Alaves responded with a 2-0 victory post lockdown in Vitoria.
- La Real had won on their previous 2 league trips to Alaves.
Team News
Pablo Machin is expected to go with the same XI that defeated Real Madrid.
There is likely to be some rotation for Real Sociedad. The likes of Willian Jose and Portu should rotate in having been left out against Rijeka.
Predicted Alaves Starting Lineup:
Pacheco – Duarte, Laguardia, Lejeune, Navarro – Rioja, Battaglia, Pina, Jota – Joselu, Perez (4-4-2)
Predicted Real Sociedad Starting Lineup:
Remiro – Munoz, Le Normand, Zubeldia, Gorosabel – Merino, Guevara, Silva – Merquelanz, Willian Jose, Portu (4-3-3)
Alaves vs Real Sociedad Predictions
Score Prediction: Alaves 1-0 Real Sociedad
It feels like the games are starting to take their toll on Real Sociedad now. They haven’t rotated as much as some teams involved in Europe and what may be a frenetic derby match isn’t really what they’d want at the end of a tough week and just before a vital European game. In-form Alaves may just spring a surprise here.
LaLiga Betting Tips (18+)
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