Malaga vs Real Zaragoza Predictions

Going up automatically is out of the question as far as Malaga are concerned, though the side relegated from La Liga at the end of last season still has a very real chance of returning to the top flight at the first time of asking. Friday’s hosts are currently in the top six and a win here would almost certainly guarantee them a place in the play-offs.

Given their league position, it would be easy to assume that Malaga have been somewhat formidable on their own patch, though that’s not exactly been the case. They have won ten of their 19 home games, though they only rank as the tenth-best home side in the division, as they’ve lost five times at La Rosaleda. That said, they’ve not given too much away, as they’ve shipped just 13 goals in 19 matches in front of a home crowd. Such a record is pleasing.

Then again, while the league table tells us that Malaga are useful at the back on their own patch, recent results say otherwise. Friday’s hosts have been breached in four of their last five at home, so it’s not terribly difficult to envisage Zaragoza, who’ve notched more away goals than any other team in the division, scoring.

Fortunately, Malaga have done well from an attacking point of view at home of late. They notched three goals against Oviedo in their most recent home match, while their recent expected goals for numbers are solid.

Likewise, Zaragoza have been performing very well in an offensive sense on their travels of late. Friday’s visitors scored three away against Extremadura last time out, in fact, they’ve scored three in each of their last three travelling matches. They may not be challenging for the top six, but Zaragoza certainly haven’t held back in terms of scoring goals on the road this season. No team has notched more away goals than Víctor Fernández’s men.

When we consider the recent respective home and away efforts of this pair, ‘Both Teams to Score’ begins to stand out as a viable option. If we add in the fact that Malaga have posted expected goals for figures of 1.7, 1.38 and 1.4 in their last three at home, as well as the fact that Zaragoza have posted numbers of 1.17, 1.3 and 1.62 in their last three on the road, then backing both teams to find the net on Friday also appears to represent a chunk of value at the current prices.