Sevilla vs Espanyol predictions and match preview for Saturday’s LaLiga fixture. Read on for the head-to-head, team news, predicted lineups and fantasy football picks as both sides look to build on midweek wins.
| Date | Saturday 25th September 2021 |
| Kick-Off | 18:30 (local time) |
| Stadium | Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan |
| Competition | LaLiga |
Sevilla vs Espanyol Preview
Sevilla are back at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan for the second time this week and it’s also a quick return to Seville for Espanyol after their trip to Real Betis last weekend. Sevilla have made a strong, unbeaten start and will fancy their chances of picking up another three points here against newly promoted opposition.
Julen Lopetegui’s side made a flying start to their game in midweek, scoring three times in the opening 22 minutes to blow away Valencia. They benefited from a bit of luck here and there and some questionable goalkeeping but it was exactly the kind of reaction Lopetegui would have wanted from his side after three straight draws prior to that in all competitions.
The Sevilla boss will have one eye on Wednesday’s Champions League trip to Wolfsburg when he picks his team here. Having only drawn their opening group game at home, there’s a bit of pressure on Sevilla to get a positive result in Germany. Some of their squad players did impress in midweek which is a good sign moving forward with new arrival Rafa Mir on target while there was also a goal for back-up full-back Gonzalo Montiel.
It was also a happy midweek for Espanyol as they claimed their first victory since returning to the top flight. Predictably it was Raul De Tomas who scored the decisive goal converting a penalty in the 1-0 home win over Alaves. They will be feeling much better about life having got that monkey off their back and they’ll be very glad to have done so with two tough games prior to the international break.
A home game against Real Madrid follows this one and Vicente Moreno will be grateful to take just about any kind of result from these two matches. The Espanyol boss is yet to fully decide on his best system so far with a few injuries hampering that. You’d expect new arrival Yangel Herrera to be a key part of this team when fit but he has been unable to play any part so far and won’t feature here either.
Head to Head
- Last 6 Competitive Meetings: 4 Sevilla Wins, 2 Draws.
- There have been 26 goals in the last 6 meetings in Seville including a memorable 6-4 Sevilla win in 2016.
- Espanyol have only taken 2 points from their last 6 league visits to the RSP but did draw 2-2 here on their last visit.
- They haven’t beaten Sevilla since a 3-1 home win in January 2017.
Team News
Sevilla are close to full strength with Suso their only significant doubt.
Espanyol continue to be without Javi Puado, Yangel Herrera y Oier due to injury. Aleix Vidal is also a doubt.
Predicted Sevilla Starting Lineup:
Bono – Acuna, Kounde, Carlos, Navas – Jordan, Fernando, Rakitic – Ocampos, En-Nesyri, Lamela (4-3-3)
Predicted Espanyol Starting Lineup:
D. Lopez – Pedrosa, Cabrera, Gomez, Gil – Darder, Morlanes – Embarba, Wu, Melamed – R.D.T. (4-2-3-1)
Sevilla vs Espanyol Predictions
Score Prediction: Sevilla 2-1 Espanyol
It’s difficult to look past Sevilla with home advantage here. They have traditionally always been so strong at home and Julen Lopetegui will be hoping to use the return of fans to really get them on a roll at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan again. Espanyol have players capable of causing problems but may just find themselves edged out over 90 minutes.
Fantasy Football Picks
LaLiga Predictions & Previews | 2021/22 LaLiga predicted lineups
Mark Sochon is an experienced football writer and editor of LaLiga Expert. Based in Madrid, he has covered La Liga and Spanish football for many years. He also covers Spanish and European football for Goal and Betfred, while his work has previously been published by the Guardian and World Soccer.