Sevilla will be bidding to make it back-to-back victories in La Liga when they continue their 2024-25 campaign with a clash against Alaves at Mendizorrotza Stadium on Friday night.
The visitors will enter the contest off the back of a much-needed 1-0 win over Getafe, while Alaves, who are eighth in the table, were beaten 3-2 by Espanyol in their last match in Spain's top flight.
Match preview
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Alaves enjoyed an excellent 2023-24 campaign after gaining promotion from the second tier, finishing in 10th spot in La Liga, which represented their best final position since the 2016-17 season.
Under the guidance of Luis Garcia, it has been another solid start to this campaign, picking up seven points from their five matches courtesy of a record of two wins, one draw and two defeats, which has left them in eighth spot in the table ahead of their clash with Sevilla.
The Blue and Whites started their season with a 2-1 loss at Celta Vigo, but they then held Real Betis at home before recording back-to-back wins over Real Sociedad and Las Palmas to move onto seven points.
Alaves will enter this match off the back of a defeat, though, having lost 3-2 to Espanyol last weekend, with a treble from Javi Puado securing all three points for the Catalan team.
El Glorioso actually beat Sevilla in both La Liga meetings last season, including a 4-3 victory on home soil, while they are unbeaten in their last four top-flight contests with Los Nervionenses, who finished a very disappointing 14th in La Liga in 2023-24.
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Last season proved to be Sevilla's worst performance in Spain's top flight since being relegated in 1999-2000, and they have now claimed 12th and 14th in their last two campaigns after finishing fourth in three straight seasons between 2019 and 2022.
A difficult start to 2024-25 saw the team pick up just two points from their first four games, drawing with Las Palmas and Mallorca, in addition to losing to Villarreal and Girona.
However, Garcia Pimienta's side managed to secure a huge three points at home to Getafe last time out, with Jesus Navas's 23rd-minute effort proving to be the difference between the two sides.
Sevilla have no European football this term, so their main focus will be on La Liga, and they will be looking to put more points on the board in their next two games against Alaves and Real Valladolid before ending September with a difficult trip to San Mames to tackle Athletic Bilbao.
As mentioned, Los Nervionenses have found it difficult in their recent meetings with Alaves, and they have not managed to overcome the Basque team away from home in the league since January 2021.
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Team News
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Alaves will again be missing Hugo Novoa due to a muscular problem, but the Basque outfit are otherwise in strong shape, having not suffered any fresh issues against Espanyol.
Head coach Garcia is likely to resist the temptation to shuffle his pack, but there could be a change in midfield, with Ander Guevara potentially being introduced.
There might also be a spot in the final third of the field for Toni Martinez, as a strong start to the campaign has seen the 27-year-old score twice in three La Liga appearances.
Sevilla, meanwhile, will be without the services of Juanlu Sanchez through suspension, as the Spaniard picked up a late red card after coming off the bench against Getafe last weekend.
Saul Niguez will also again miss out due to a ban, while Albert Sambi Lokonga, Loic Bade and Suso are unavailable for selection due to injury problems.
Head coach Garcia Pimienta is expected to name close to the same side that took to the field for the first whistle against Getafe, with Dodi Lukebakio for Chidera Ejuke potentially the only change.
Alaves possible starting lineup:
Sivera; Tenaglia, Abqar, Sedlar, M Sanchez; Guridi, Guevara, Blanco; T Martinez, K Garcia, Conechny
Sevilla possible starting lineup:
Nyland; Carmona, Nianzou, Marcao; Navas, Gudelj, Sow, Pedrosa; Peque, Romero, Lukebakio
We say: Alaves 1-1 Sevilla
There have been 12 goals in the last two La Liga matches between these two sides, but we are expecting this to be a quieter affair. We are finding it tough to pick a winner on Friday night and have therefore had to settle on a low-scoring draw, which both managers would likely take ahead of kickoff.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.