The Matchday 19 clash in La Liga between Real Sociedad and Villarreal will take place on January 13 at the Anoeta Stadium in San Sebastián. Real Sociedad vs. Villarreal: prediction and betting odds, statistics.
Predicted lineups for Real Sociedad vs. Villarreal
Real Sociedad (4-4-2): Alejandro Remiro – Jon Aramburu, Jon Pacheco, Igor Zubeldia, Aihen Munoz – Beñat Turrientes, Ander Barrenetxea, Sergio Gomez, Luka Sucic – Brais Mendez, Mikel Oyarzabal.
Villarreal (4-4-2): Luis Junior – Sergi Cardona, Kiko Femenia, Logan Costa, Raul Albiol – Denis Suarez, Yeremi Pino, Santi Comesaña, Pape Gueye – Thierno Barry, Alex Baena.
The starting lineup for each team from their previous match in this tournament is listed.
Real Sociedad
The San Sebastián side went into the winter break with an away defeat to Celta by a score of 0-2. Before that, the team played to a goalless draw at home against Las Palmas. This season, Imanol Alguacil's men have already gone at least two consecutive matches without scoring in the league – in September, they failed to score in four matches. The club sits seventh, five points behind the European competition zone. Also, Real Sociedad has conceded only 13 goals, with only Atletico having a better defense in the current La Liga (12).
Defender Igor Zubeldia will miss the match due to suspension, and defender Amari Traore is out with an injury.
- At least one team has failed to score in nine of Real Sociedad's last matches in La Liga.
- No more than two goals have been scored in 9 of Real Sociedad's last 10 La Liga games.
- The San Sebastián side has not conceded a goal in the second half in their last six home league matches.
Villarreal
Meanwhile, the Valencian side secured their biggest win of the current La Liga season in the last round, defeating Leganés away with a score of 5-2. However, before that, the team had not won in five consecutive league matches (3 draws and 2 losses). The club is in fifth place, just six points away from the top four. Marcelino García's men also have a game in hand.
Midfielder Yeremi Pino will not play due to an accumulation of yellow cards. Midfielder Ilias Akhomach and forward Alfonso Pedraza will miss the match due to injuries.
- Both teams have scored in 17 of Villarreal's last 20 La Liga matches.
- At least three goals have been scored in 6 of the club's last 8 league games.
- The number "2" has appeared in the final scoreline in 7 of Villarreal's last away matches in La Liga.
Real Sociedad vs. Villarreal: Match Prediction
Matches involving Real Sociedad feature some of the fewest goals in the league. However, the upcoming match is unlikely to be low-scoring. This is due to Villarreal, who score about two goals on average per match but also concede at a level similar to La Liga's lower-ranked teams (only Valladolid has a worse defense). The average number of goals in Villarreal's games is 3.56 (only Barcelona has a higher average – 3.84).
Additionally, head-to-head meetings between these opponents are typically entertaining with plenty of goals. In the last 10 encounters in La Liga, at least two goals have been scored nine times. Both teams have scored in 4 of the last 5 meetings at Real Sociedad's home in La Liga. Furthermore, there has been a goal exchange in 20 of Villarreal's last 24 away league games. Therefore, my prediction is: Both teams to score – yes
