Who will get the upper hand in the neighbourly duel?
On Friday evening, two neighbours in the table meet in La Liga. An Almeria vs. Espanyol Barcelona tip is therefore not easy, the bookmakers do not see any team clearly in front. The form curve is slightly in favour of the visitors, but Almeria have the home advantage.
In any case, the two teams’ seasons have not been entirely dissimilar. In the forward play, the last move is missing, defensively there are sometimes gaps. That is why the teams are in the lower midfield of the league and not further up.
These omens mean that it should surprise no one if there is no great spectacle between these teams. But the game can still be interesting, in case of doubt from a tactical point of view.
Almeria – Statistics & current form
The fact that Almeria’s primary goal this season would be to stay in the league was on everyone’s mind before the season started. But of course there is always the hope of surpassing that mark. The team goes into the matchday standing in 14th place, last Monday they drew 2-2 away to Valencia. By Almeria standards, this was an extremely offensive game.
Actually, the hosts like it much more defensive. Almeria tries to be compact and not let the opponent develop. This also has to do with the fact that coach Rubi’s team is not exactly brilliant up front. No player has more than four goals to his name. The defensive approach is therefore more a means to an end.
The hosts have now played five competitive games in a row without winning. Four of them were in the league. Of course, three draws have been the result, but it has not changed the fact that Almeria are mid-table and have no advantage over the lower places. The situation remains tricky, with 17th place just two points behind the hosts.
Almeria: Need to catch up at both ends
With just one win in seven games, the home side do not have a good record over a longer period either. 20 goals in 18 games played is also a problem. In addition, 28 goals conceded do not make the hosts jump for joy. So a lot of things read negatively, but there is no doubt that 19 points have been earned.
16 of them were at home. That raises the hosts’ hopes of a positive result in this match, even if the bookmakers don’t really trust it yet and are rather conservative about a home win. A good form on the day is therefore imperative to conceal their own problems. In addition, a game without conceding a goal would be a great advantage, as that has only been achieved once in the last twelve games, but at home.
Despite all this, the form of the last few weeks does not speak in favour of the hosts and the visitors are a little better in the swing of things. Therefore, before the match Almeria vs Espanyol Barcelona, our prediction is that the guests will not lose.
Predicted line-up of Almeria:
Martinez – Mendes, Babic, Chumi, Akieme – Costa, Melero, Robertone – Leo Baptistao, Portillo, El Bilal Touré
Last matches played by Almeria:
La Liga
24/01/2023 – Valencia 2 – 2 Almeria
15/01/2023 – Almeria 1 – 1 Atletico Madrid
08/01/2023 – Almeria 0 – 2 Real Sociedad
31/12/2022 – Cadiz 1 – 1 Almeria
Club friendlies
23/12/2022 – Almeria 2 – 0 Lazio Roma
Espanyol Barcelona – Statistics & current form
Espanyol Barcelona and coach Diego Martinez are playing a rock solid season so far. The team has been able to show some good games and especially a red-hot striker in the squad. This is Joselu, who has ten goals to his name so far. He is something like the life insurance of the club.
Most recently, there was a 1-0 home win against Real Betis, but it was not Joselu who scored, but striker Braithwaite. The victory brought Espanyol to 13th place in La Liga, the team is just ahead of the hosts Almeria. Interesting: The visitors have so far scored slightly better away than at home (0.22 points per game more) and, above all, have only lost twice.
Six defeats in 18 games are very respectable anyway. Espanyol Barcelona rarely win, but are definitely considered an unpleasant team to play against and difficult to beat. With this quality, it could also be enough to stay in the league and possibly do so in a commanding manner.
Espanyol Barcelona with a positive trend
In recent weeks, the visitors have really presented themselves very neatly. Espanyol Barcelona have not lost any of their last four games in La Liga. Espanyol’s basic statistics are quite decent. 22 goals mark a solid value in the offensive, 26 goals conceded are not too bad either. Espanyol Barcelona have only failed to score three times in La Liga, but they have also only kept a clean sheet three times defensively.
It seems, however, that the visitors have used the World Cup break really well to work on structural things. If they can maintain their form, the team from Catalonia can be expected to make steps forward in the table in the coming weeks. Almeria, Osasuna, Real Sociedad, Elche and Mallorca also represent a programme that is not too tough.
An even match is to be expected, in which both teams will first try to keep the defence tight. Therefore, before the Almeria vs Espanyol Barcelona match, our prediction is that not both teams will score.
Predicted line-up of Espanyol Barcelona:
Fernandez – Gil, Cabrera, Calero, Olivan – Souza, Darder, Puado, Melamed – Braithwaite, Joselu
Last matches played by Espanyol Barcelona:
La Liga
21/01/2023 – Espanyol 1 – 0 Real Betis
Copa del Rey
19/01/2023 – Athletic Bilbao 1 – 0 Espanyol
La Liga
15/01/2023 – Getafe 1 – 2 Espanyol
08/01/2023 – Espanyol 2 – 2 Girona
Copa del Rey
04/01/2023 – Espanyol 3 – 1 Celta Vigo
Almeria – Espanyol Barcelona Direct comparison / H2H-balance
Nine out of 17 direct duels went to Espanyol Barcelona, four times there was a draw. For Almeria, it is now a matter of making the direct comparison a little more balanced. The visitors have also scored more goals in the direct comparison so far, with the score 31:15 for Espanyol.
Almeria – Espanyol Barcelona Tip
Almeria have been on a slight downward trend in recent weeks, while the opposite is true for Espanyol. Now the two meet and the home side have the slight home advantage, which means that the bookies don’t really see a favourite here.
The exciting starting position of the table neighbours is also evident when looking at the Almeria vs Espanyol Barcelona betting odds.
Because the visitors have slight advantages overall, our tip before the Almeria vs Espanyol Barcelona match is that the visitors will not lose this game.
