Will Sevilla return to second place?
The battle for the vice title in the Spanish LaLiga could hardly be more exciting. Second to fourth place are separated only by goal difference after 30 matchdays. The first team out of this trio is Sevilla FC this weekend. The Andalusian derby is already on the agenda on Friday evening. In the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium, Sevilla and Granada will face each other.
The two teams are not united by the region of Andalusia, but also by their current lack of form. Despite having the chance to finish second, Sevilla are currently in trouble, having won only two of their last ten league games. The statistics are even weaker for the visitors, as Granada have celebrated just one win in their last twelve games and are approaching the relegation zone.
Sevilla is by no means “on fire”, but the very strong home record and the clearly higher quality are clear arguments that underline the role of the hosts as favourites. For a home win of Sevilla FC against Granada, betting odds in the range of just over 1.40 are currently offered. The match kicks off on Friday evening at 9 pm.
Sevilla – Statistics & current form
Sevilla FC fans can’t complain about a lack of success in recent years. The bar is now high and at the beginning of the year it still looked as if it could be raised again. As Europa League specialists, the “Final Dahoam” was the declared goal and, what’s more, Sevilla were the only notable rivals for Real Madrid in the championship race.
Seven draws in ten league games
Everything is different at the beginning of April, however, as Sevilla presented themselves too vulnerable in recent weeks. In the Europa League, Sevilla were unfortunate to lose to West Ham United, and in the league, the Andalusians forgot how to win. It was mentioned earlier that only two of the last ten league games ended with a win for Sevilla FC. Last weekend’s narrow 1-0 defeat in the top match against FC Barcelona was the first league defeat since 28 October.
In the meantime, one draw followed the next. As a result, Sevilla had to let the Royals go and are now twelve points behind them. The dream of winning the title is over, and Sevilla are now in the fight to qualify for the Champions League again. Fifth place, held by city rivals Betis, is also only four points away.
Best defence in the league
Sevilla still have a tough remaining schedule (Real, Atletico, Villarreal, among others), so a game against a relegation candidate is almost a must-win. Especially because of the very strong home record (10-4-0). Given the distribution of goals, a prediction of HT/FT 1/1 is also possible between Sevilla and Granada. In the first 30 minutes of the game, Lopetegui’s team has a convincing 11:1 goal record at home.
In general, the defence is the absolute showpiece, as Sevilla have only conceded 20 goals so far this season. This gives the Andalusians by far the best defence in the league, while league leader Real Madrid has already conceded six more goals. A bet on “Sevilla to win by zero” is therefore also a legitimate option.
Predicted Sevilla line-up:
Bono – Rekik, Diego Carlos, Kounde, Montiel – Gudelj, Jordan – Ocampos, Rakitic, Lamela – En-Nesyri
Last matches played by Sevilla:
La Liga
04/03 2022 – FC Barcelona 1 – 0 FC Sevilla
03/20 2022 – Sevilla FC 0 – 0 Real Sociedad
Europa League Final Stage
03/17 2022 – West Ham 2 – 0 Sevilla FC
La Liga
03/13 2022 – Rayo Vallecano 1 – 1 Sevilla FC
Europa League Final Stage
03/10 2022 – Sevilla FC 1 – 0 West Ham
Granada – Statistics & current form
That the first season under head coach Diego Martinez would be anything but easy was something fans were well aware of. For three years, the great Sevilla FC fan was responsible for the sporting rise at Granada. In the summer, they parted ways and since then the Andalusians have not been able to build on their success. In the previous season, Granada had ten more points on their credit side after 30 games.
What is striking here is that the number of goals scored (33 compared to 36) and goals conceded (48 compared to 50) reveals little difference, but Granada won only six games in 2021/22, while last season they won 11 of their first 30 games.
Despite crisis – morale is high
The year 2021 ended for Granada with two victories, especially the home win against Atletico Madrid could be classified in the category “sensation”. However, this self-confidence was lost over Christmas and New Year, as the crisis began with the start of the new calendar year. Granada went without a win ten times in a row and managed just three draws during this period.
The negative trend was halted just before the international break, when the relegation battle with Deportivo Alaves (currently bottom of the table) in the Basque Country resulted in a narrow 1-0 victory. The first success of 2022 was followed by another break, which again did not seem to suit Granada. At home against Rayo Vallecano, interim coach Ruben Torrecilla Gonzalez’s team was 2-0 down after 17 minutes. But in the second period, the relegation candidates showed great morale and managed to get a point.
Granada now have 29 points and are in 16th place in the table. However, the lead over the first relegation place, currently occupied by Mallorca, is only three points. The two most recent results are encouraging, but the road to staying in the league remains difficult.
Despite the four points from the last two games, further growth on the credit side would be surprising for Granada on Friday night in the derby. After all, the relegation candidates have only won two away games this season and have only managed 14 away goals in 15 games. This poor record coupled with the home side’s home strength underlines the low odds between Sevilla and Granada when betting on the home side.
Predicted line-up of Granada:
Luis Maximiano – Escudero, Sanchez, Duarte, Quini – Collado, Petrovic, Milla, Puertes – Luis Suarez, Molina
Last matches played by Granada:
La Liga
04/03 2022 – Granada 2 – 2 Rayo Vallecano
Club friendlies
03/25 2022 – Real Jaen 0 – 5 Granada
La Liga
03/19 2022 – Deportivo Alaves 2 – 3 Granada
03/12 2022 – Granada 0 – 1 Elche
03/05 2022 – Valencia 3 – 1 Granada
Sevilla – Granada Direct Comparison / H2H Balance
The host club is clearly the favourite in this Andalusian derby. At least that is what a look at the recent duels in La Liga makes clear. In six of the last seven games between Sevilla and Granada, betting on a home win was the right decision. The only exception was an away win for Sevilla in the 2019/20 season, which also means that Granada won the first leg. A goal from Ruben Rochina gave Granada the derby victory.
Sevilla – Granada Tip
Despite the Andalusian derby, it cannot necessarily be called a neighbourly duel, as the two cities are almost 250 kilometres apart. The teams are also far apart in the current table, with the home side at the top and the visitors at the bottom. Accordingly, a prediction in the direction of the home strong hosts is also obvious in the case of Sevilla against Granada.
A little caution is certainly called for, as the Lopetegui eleven has dropped points far too often in recent weeks. However, the impressive home record (10-4-0) as well as the clearly higher quality speaks a clear language. Very good chances of success are also given to the tip HT/FT 1/1 for the duel Sevilla against Granada. Sevilla are very accurate in the early stages of a home match, so an early decision in favour of the favourites would not be surprising. For this bet, the bookmakers offer odds of over 2.00, for which a stake of six units is recommended.
