Will the yellow submarine manage to get out of the crisis?
The ninth matchday in the Spanish LaLiga is dominated by the prestigious Clásico. The current round of matches will be concluded on Monday evening with a game between two teams that are searching for their form after a strong start to the season. The match between Conference League participants Villarreal and Osasuna will kick off at 9pm.
The yellow submarine from Villarreal started the season brilliantly thanks to their defensive bulwark, collecting ten points from their first four games. Geronimo Rulli did not concede a goal. However, Emery’s team has now waited four games for a win in the league. The situation is similar for the Pamplona side, as Osasuna have won four of their first five games, but have now gone three without a win. Whose winless streak will end? According to bookmakers, Villarreal are clear favourites against Osasuna at the current betting odds.
Villarreal do not have a real home advantage, as the renovation of the Estadio La Ceramica is in its final stages, but fans will have to wait a little longer before they can move in. The match will be played at the Ciudad de Valencia, the home of UD Levante. For the Villarreal fans, this means a journey of almost 60 kilometres.
Villarreal – Statistics & current form
Last season’s Champions League semi-finalists are having to bake smaller bread this season and are only operating in the Conference League, but head coach Unai Emery is taking advantage of this to be able to rotate completely on the international stage. It is often the case that eleven completely new players are in the starting line-up on Thursday, as was the case at the weekend. The double burden is therefore only a challenge to a limited extent, because the squad is sufficiently strong across the board.
Spectacular play without penetrating power
While Villarreal have been completely unscathed on the international stage and have already secured their place in the next round with four wins from four games, things have not gone according to plan in the league recently. Although Argentinian goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli has conceded only three goals in the last four league games, Unai Emery’s strong team has not managed a single league win during this period. Only in the 1-1 draw against Sevilla FC did the yellow submarine score a goal.
Villarreal are currently without top striker Gerard Moreno due to a muscle injury. The absence of the 30-year-old striker cannot be compensated at the moment. Arnaut Danjuma is still looking for his form after his long injury break. Otherwise, an offensive player with a built-in goal guarantee is missing, players like top talent Yeremy Pino, Nicolas Jackson, Samu Chukwueze or Giovanni Lo Celso are an enrichment for (almost) every team in terms of play, but with potential for improvement in terms of finishing.
As a result, Villarreal’s league matches this season have been stingy with goals, with an average of just 1.63 and only two matches with a score of over 2.5. This means that for the clash between Villarreal and Osasuna, the prediction can be “Under 2.5” or “Both teams hit? No” (was only the case in the 1:1 against Sevilla). With odds around 1.90, there is certainly value to be found here.
Predicted Villarreal line-up:
Rulli – Pedraza, Pau Torres, Albiol, Kiko Femenia – Coquelin, Capoue, Parejo, Pino – Danjuma, Jackson
Last matches played by Villarreal:
European Conference League Grp. C
13/10/2022 – Austria Wien 0 – 1 FC Villarreal
La Liga
09/10/2022 – Real Sociedad 1 – 0 FC Villarreal
Europa Conference League Grp. C
07/10/2022 – FC Villarreal 5 – 0 Austria Wien
La Liga
01/10/2022 – Cadiz 0 – 0 FC Villarreal
18/09/2022 – Villarreal FC 1 – 1 Sevilla FC
Osasuna – Statistics & current form
The Pamplona side have been back in the top flight since the 2019/20 season and have never had anything to do with the relegation battle since their LaLiga return. The team of successful coach Jagoba Arrasate immediately established itself in the midfield of the league and finished the last three seasons in tenth (2x) and eleventh place respectively. This season, the team got off to a brilliant start and after five league games, they had four victories to their name. Only the duel against Betis Sevilla was lost by a narrow 1:0.
Eventful defeat against the bats
It was mentioned at the beginning, however, that Osasuna have failed to win three times in a row in the league recently. Against Getafe and Valencia they lost in front of their home crowd, only away at Real Madrid they managed an unexpected point. In particular, last weekend’s defeat against the bats from Valencia was not short of highlights.
Firstly, Osasuna missed a penalty in the person of Chimy Avila (top scorer this season with three goals) and missed the equaliser to make it 1-2. A little later, Valencia striker Cavani also failed to score from the spot after Osasuna centre-back Eric Garcia was sent off for an emergency foul. In injury time, Ruben Pena was guilty of assault and will miss Monday’s game against his former club. Arrasate can therefore by no means count on his best possible formation and is forced to improvise. In this respect, the high odds on the visitors between Villarreal and Osasuna are quite understandable.
Predicted line-up of Osasuna:
Herrera – Cruz, Hernandez, Herrando, Vidal – Torro, Moncayola – Ez Abde, Oroz, Gomez – Garcia
Last matches played by Osasuna:
La Liga
08/10/2022 – Osasuna Pamplona 1 – 2 Valencia
03/10/2022 – Real Madrid 1 – 1 Osasuna Pamplona
Club friendlies
22/09/2022 – Real Valladolid 0 – 2 Osasuna Pamplona
La Liga
18/09/2022 – Osasuna Pamplona 0 – 2 Getafe
13/09/2022 – Almeria 0 – 1 Osasuna Pamplona
Villarreal – Osasuna Direct comparison / H2H balance
A direct comparison could hardly be more balanced. 34 games in the Spanish top flight and ten more in the second division can be found in the database between these two teams. Only eight of the 44 games ended in a draw, otherwise both teams have celebrated 18 victories each. The only difference is in the goal difference, with the yellow submarine scoring 66 times and Osasuna 59.
In the recent past, the team from the bullfighting metropolis was a kind of fear opponent for the international participant. Between Villarreal and Osasuna, betting on Osasuna to win has been the right choice three times recently.
Villarreal – Osasuna tip
The visitors from Pamplona have one point more to show ahead of Monday night’s direct clash, but are still considered clear underdogs by the providers. After four league games without a win, it seems a little surprising at first glance that odds of only 1.60 are being offered for a win for the hosts between Villarreal and Osasuna. The direct comparison does not necessarily support this assessment on the part of the bookmakers either.
However, it is definitely the case that Unai Emery’s yellow submarine has significantly more quality in its own ranks and is performing extremely well despite recent results in the league. The defence continues to be a bulwark and there are plenty of chances up front. If you want to bet on Villarreal to win against Osasuna, you should definitely consider a win to nil, as Villarreal rarely concede goals. A 2.62 for the bet “Villarreal to 0” is played with a stake of five units.
