Espanyol vs Villarreal Betting Tips

They will move into 3rd place above Real Madrid for 24 hours at least with a win here although in all likelihood Marcelino will be more concerned with trying to extend the gap on the sides below them which currently stands at 6 points.

A return of 40 points from their opening 20 games is outstanding for a club of their size and one that again sold some key players in the summer. They did suffer a minor set-back last weekend when they were held to a 0-0 draw at home by struggling Real Betis but this week have benefited from not having to play in the Copa Del Rey after their elimination against Athletic the previous week.

Espanyol are a pretty uninspiring side right now in truth and haven’t won any of their 6 matches since the brief winter break although 3 of them were admittedly against city rivals Barcelona. Their 3-1 defeat at Getafe last time out was their 4th in a row though and they will not come into this game with much confidence given they’ve been struggling at both ends of the pitch and have slipped to 14th in the league.

Villarreal have won their last two away games at Real Sociedad and Deportivo La Coruna which suggests they are capable of doing likewise at Espanyol, who are roughly on the same level as those 2 clubs although currently below both in La Liga. It’s likely to be a tight game though so consider backing Villarreal to win in the ‘draw no bet’ market at 4/5.

With a sturdy defence and finishers like Roberto Soldado and Cedric Bakambu, Villarreal often don’t need to create a whole host of chances to win football matches and they could edge this 1-0 with Espanyol struggling for goals and you can back that to be the case at 6/1.