Will Osasuna live up to their role as favourites at the third division club?
The Spanish King’s Cup will be played for the 118th time. For the third time, the teams promoted to the quarter-finals will be determined in a single encounter, with a return match deciding the final only in the preliminary round. This week, the second main round is on the agenda, not yet including the top teams of the past LaLiga season. The last team to advance to the next round will be determined on Thursday evening in Galicia, with La Coruna and Osasuna facing off.
A duel that has been played many times in the Spanish LaLiga, meanwhile this encounter is between a third division side and a LaLiga team. Deportivo La Coruna experienced a steady relegation in recent years and seems to be slowly rehabilitating itself. Despite their good results in the league so far, the hosts are naturally considered underdogs. However, the odds for La Coruna against Osasuna are quite interesting at over 1.70 for an away win.
Most importantly, the visitors from Pamplona have shown themselves to be extremely strong away from home so far this season. The match kicks off at Deportivo La Coruna’s venerable Riazor Stadium on Thursday evening at 9pm.
La Coruna – Statistics & current form
At the beginning of the 21st century, Deportivo La Coruna were at the peak of their club history, winning the Spanish championship and reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League. Almost 20 years later, nothing remains of these successes and the team now only plays in the two-tier third division. This does not even have a professional status, but many clubs operate semi-professionally at this level.
Promotion as a big goal
The ambitious club wants to reach the professional level again as soon as possible and is considered the clear favourite in Grupo I. This role has also been fulfilled so far. So far, this role has also been fulfilled and after 16 completed games, Deportivo La Coruna are in first place in the table. Ten wins, four draws and two defeats are the results so far. What is particularly striking here is the very strong defence, as the team of head coach Borja Jimenez has conceded just seven goals.
Goalkeeper Ian Mackay (35 years old) has kept his box clean ten times. Impressive statistics, but also due to the enormous disparity in this semi-professional third division. Accordingly, these figures should be evaluated with caution.
The very strong home record at the Riazor Stadium (6-2-0 and only two goals conceded) also sounds very good and is certainly one reason why “only” betting odds around 4.80 are offered for a home win. However, the difference in class is enormous and the underdog will certainly reach its limits in this match. Therefore, the prediction for La Coruna against Osasuna is for a win for the visitors.
Predicted line-up of La Coruna:
Mackay – Hernandez, Granero, Sanchez, Trilli – de Camargo, Bergantinos, Elitim, Quiles – Fedor, Lopez
Last matches played by La Coruna:
Primera Division RFEF – Group 1
12/12 2021 – Deportivo La Coruna 3 – 0 Real Valladolid B
12/04 2021 – Ferrol 0 – 0 Deportivo La Coruna
Copa del Rey
12/01 2021 – UCAM Murcia 3 – 4 Deportivo La Coruna
Primera Division RFEF – Group 1
11/28 2021 – Deportivo La Coruna 1 – 1 Athletic Bilbao B
11/21 2021 – Rayo Majadahonda 1 – 2 Deportivo La Coruna
Osasuna – Statistics & current form
2016/17 interlude in LaLiga lasted only 38 matchdays, after two years in the second division CA Osasuna has been back in the top flight since 2019/20 and has now established itself as a very good mid-table side. The tenth and eleventh rankings are very strong results for the team from the world-famous bullfighting area. Head coach Jagoba Arrasate’s team is also at this level this season and can always cause surprises.
Strong away record
After 17 matchdays, Osasuna have 22 points to their name, seven more than at the same time last season. However, much more would have been possible, because after a strong start to the season, Arrsate’s team has forgotten how to win. The last of five victories dates back to 17 October, when they won 2-1 away to CL contenders Villarreal. Since then, Osasuna have remained winless in eight league games, but have suffered “only” three defeats during this period.
It is particularly striking that CA Osasuna feel much more comfortable away from home than at home in El Sadar. On average, they score only 0.89 points per game at home, but this figure can be increased to a very strong 1.75 points per game away from home. Four of Osasuna’s five wins this season have come away from home. Based on these statistics alone, it is worth betting on the visitors between La Coruna and Osasuna at fair odds.
A win in the penultimate game of the season would be very important for morale. In the event of another failure, the crisis would gradually become undeniable. Accordingly, it is to be expected that the favourites will refrain from big experiments and want to fix the hunger for success with little rotation.
Predicted line-up of Osasuna:
Herrera – Cote, Garcia, Ramalho, Vidal – Sanjurjo – Ontiveros, Brasanac, Martinez, Barja – Budimir
Last matches played by Osasuna:
LaLiga
12/12 2021 – Osasuna Pamplona 2 – 2 Barcelona
12/05 2021 – Levante 0 – 0 Osasuna Pamplona
Copa del Rey
12/02 2021 – CF San Agustin 0 – 4 Osasuna Pamplona
LaLiga
11/29 2021 – Osasuna Pamplona 1 – 1 Elche
11/20 2021 – Atletico Madrid 1 – 0 Osasuna Pamplona
La Coruna – Osasuna Direct Comparison / H2H Balance
For the first time since the 2018/19 season, the Galicians and the team from Pamplona will face each other again. Back then, it was still a duel in the second Spanish league, with both teams winning the home game. In general, the previous games were very much characterised by home victories, the guests rarely had reason to cheer. But the difference in quality has rarely been as clear as it was on this Thursday, as the clubs have developed in a completely contrary direction since the 2018/19 season. The home side are now only based in the third division, while the visitors play in the Spanish top flight.
La Coruna – Osasuna Tip
There have already been a few surprises in the first games of this second main round. Anything is always possible in the cup, but even so, there are not necessarily the signs for this game that betting on the underdog makes sense. Deportivo La Coruna will certainly not lack confidence after a very good autumn, but still a success is not to be expected.
The visitors are winless for eight league games, but still present themselves very appealing again and again. Only last weekend, they managed a 2-2 draw against FC Barcelona and, what’s more, Arrasate’s team is much stronger away than at home this season. Without countless changes in the starting line-up, Osasuna should (be able to) take command from the start and press for an early decision. The prediction between La Coruna and Osasuna is therefore HT/FT 2/2 at odds of 2.75. The stake is five units.
