Villarreal will be aiming to stretch their unbeaten run of form in all competitions to six matches when they welcome Girona to Estadio de la Ceramica on Sunday afternoon.
The Yellow Submarine are currently fourth in the La Liga table, boasting 25 points from their opening 13 matches of the season, while Girona, who have won their last three in the league, are now in seventh spot.
Match preview
© Imago
Villarreal have a record of seven wins, four draws and two defeats from 13 La Liga matches this season, which has left them fourth in the table, four points behind third-placed Atletico Madrid with a game in hand.
The Yellow Submarine have been a brilliant watch in La Liga this term, scoring 25 times and conceding 21, but they will surely have to tighten up defensively in order to secure a top-four finish in the division.
Marcelino's side drew 2-2 with Osasuna last time out; they were two goals behind in Pamplona, but Alex Baena halved the deficit in the 67th minute before a 93rd-minute penalty from Gerard Moreno secured a share of the spoils.
Villarreal are unbeaten in their last five matches in all competitions, including a 3-0 victory over Alaves in their last match in front of their own fans, while they thumped Poblense 6-1 in the Copa del Rey at the end of October.
The Yellow Submarine have actually been better on their travels this term than at home, with 14 of their 25 points coming away, but Girona have gathered just eight points from their seven league games on the road during the 2024-25 campaign.
© Imago
This was always going to be a testing season for Girona considering their incredible success last term, finishing third in La Liga to secure a spot in the league phase of the Champions League.
The 2023-24 season was the greatest in their history, and there has been a drop-off this term, with the Catalan outfit struggling to adapt to playing twice a week, and they have lost four of their five Champions League games, which has left them down in 30th spot in the table ahead of their next European clash with Liverpool.
Michel's side have won their last three in the league against Leganes, Getafe and Espanyol, though, which has moved them up into seventh spot in the table.
The White and Reds are only four points behind fourth-placed Villarreal, albeit having played a game more, and they recorded a 2-1 victory over the Yellow Submarine in the corresponding match during the 2023-24 campaign.
That said, Villarreal have won four of the last five meetings in Spain's top flight, and the hosts will be the fresher of the two sides, with Girona in Champions League action on Wednesday, suffering a 1-0 defeat to Sturm Graz in Austria.
- W
- L
- D
- W
- W
- D
- L
- D
- W
- W
- W
- D
- W
- L
- L
- W
- W
- W
- W
- W
- L
- W
- W
- L
Team News
© Imago
Villarreal are currently without a number of first-team players through injury, with Ramon Terrats, Eric Bailly, Ayoze Perez, Ilias Akhomach, Nicolas Pepe, Juan Foyth and Alfonso Pedraza all unavailable for selection.
Gerard Moreno replaced Terrats at the interval of the clash with Osasuna, and the former is now expected to come into the XI in potentially the only change from the last match.
Denis Suarez and Juan Bernat are among the options for change, but Sergi Cardona should again be given the nod at left-back, while Yeremy Pino is expected to retain his spot down the right.
As for Girona, their injury list has eased significantly, with Yangel Herrera, Gabriel Misehouy and Portu the only three players definitely out of this contest for the visitors.
Head coach Michel will make changes to the side that started against Sturm Graz in the Champions League, with Yaser Asprilla in line to return, while Donny van de Beek should also be back in the XI.
Bojan Miovski scored a brace against Espanyol in the league last weekend, and the 25-year-old will once again lead the line, with Arnaut Danjuma and Viktor Tsygankov potentially starting on the bench.
Villarreal possible starting lineup:
Conde; Navarro, Albiol, Costa, S Cardona; Pino, Parejo, Comesana, Baena; Barry, G Moreno
Girona possible starting lineup:
Gazzaniga; A Martinez, D Lopez, Krejci, Blind; Romeu, Gutierrez; Asprilla, Van de Beek, Gil; Miovski
We say: Villarreal 1-1 Girona
Villarreal are still missing some very important players, including their leading goalscorer Perez, and they will be hosting an improving outfit this weekend. Girona have had their issues this term, but their recent league form is excellent, and we are expecting the visitors to be good enough for a point on Sunday afternoon.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.