Espanyol vs Villarreal predictions and match preview for Wednesday’s LaLiga fixture. Read on for analysis, team news and predicted lineups as the Yellow Submarine travel to the RCDE Stadium.
| Date | Wednesday 9th November 2022 |
| Kick-Off | 20:00 (local time) |
| Stadium | RCDE Stadium |
| Competition | LaLiga |
Espanyol vs Villarreal Preview
Villarreal visit the RCDE Stadium this week and they do so in desperate need of a result and better performance. Recently appointed Quique Setien is only 4 games into the job but is already coming under intense scrutiny after a woeful start.
Diego Martinez has had slightly longer to try and work his magic on Espanyol but it still very much feels like a work in progress. They come into this matchday on the back of three straight draws and they remain only a point outside the relegation zone. A victory here would make it a much happier break for the former Granada boss and his team.
They can certainly take some belief from a spirited showing at the Metropolitano at the weekend. Reduced to 10 men in just the 28th minute as Leandro Cabrera saw red, it felt like an almost impossible mission for the Catalan club. However Sergi Darder’s 2nd Half strike ensured they took a point from the game and that should enable them to take confidence into this.
As for Villarreal, these are worrying times all of a sudden with Quique Setien’s reign nothing short of a disaster so far. It is still very early days, but that didn’t stop some Villarreal fans from calling for their new boss to leave in what was his first home league game at the weekend, a 2-0 defeat to Mallorca.
Setien has always been a divisive figure in Spanish football but he will surely at least be given the World Cup period to work on a few things on the training ground and try to get these players to adapt to his methods. In theory, Villarreal do have the kind of personnel who should be able to produce his possession-heavy style of football but there has been no sign of that delivering results so far, either in LaLiga or Europe.
Team News & Possible Lineups
Espanyol
| INJURED | Sanchez, Pedrosa |
| DOUBTFUL | |
| BANNED | Cabrera |
Possible XI: Lecomte – Olivan, Gomez, Calero, Gil – Bare, Darder, Souza – Braithwaite, Joselu, Puado (4-3-3)
Coach: Diego Martinez
Villarreal
| INJURED | Lo Celso |
| DOUBTFUL | Pedraza, Gerard Moreno |
| BANNED | Torres |
Possible XI: Rulli – Moreno, Albiol, Mandi, Femenia – Parejo, Capoue, Trigueros – Morales, Danjuma, Pino (4-3-3)
Coach: Quique Setien
Score Prediction: Espanyol 2-0 Villarreal
While the protests of their fans seem premature, Villarreal were genuinely very poor against Mallorca and a repeat level here would surely see them slump to another defeat. Espanyol have only lost 1 of their last 7 games and just need to start turning a few draws into victories. They’ve a good chance to do that here with their opponents so badly out of sorts right now.
PLEASE NOTE – Our LaLiga predictions are not betting tips! No profits are guaranteed if you’re using them to bet on Spanish football. If you are gambling, do so responsibly and never stake more than you can afford to lose. BeGambleAware.
