The La Liga Round 18 match between Elche and Villarreal will take place on 3 January at the Manuel Martínez Valero Stadium. Elche vs Villarreal: prediction and betting odds, statistics.
Elche
In the previous round the club routed a strong Rayo Vallecano side 4-0. That marked Elche's second big win in their last three Primera División outings, having previously gone seven games without a victory in the competition (3 draws, 4 defeats). A winter revival has pushed them back into the top half of the table; Eder Sarabia's side currently sit ninth. They remain six points short of the European places. Notably, Elche are still unbeaten at home this La Liga season (5 wins, 4 draws). The hosts have conceded just five goals in home league matches so far, a tally bettered only by Rayo Vallecano (4).
- The team has scored in 6 of their last 7 La Liga matches.
- Elche have covered the +1.5 handicap in 5 of their last 6 matches in this competition.
- At least two goals have been scored in 5 of the club's last 6 home league games.
Projected Elche lineup (3-5-2)
Iñaki Peña – Jon Donald, David Affengruber, Pedro Bigas – Hector Fort, Alvaro Nunez, Marc Aguado, Aleix Febas, Herman Valera – Alvaro Rodriguez, Rafa Mir.
Midfielder Federico Redondo is suspended. Forward Grady Diangana is unavailable due to injury.
Villarreal
Villarreal enjoyed a long unbeaten run in La Liga, but their final match before the winter break went poorly: they suffered a 0-2 home defeat to Barcelona, ending a six-match winning streak in the league. Prior to that loss the team had avoided defeat in seven consecutive league fixtures and had been unbeaten at home since March. Against Barcelona they also failed to score for the first time in 12 La Liga matches. The defeat saw Villarreal drop to fourth in the table, although they still have two games in hand over the top three. Even after the loss, Marcelino's side remain one of the most reliable teams in La Liga; they have conceded just 15 goals in total this season.
- At least two goals have been scored in each of the team's last 9 league matches.
- Villarreal's away competitive run in La Liga stands at 6 matches (4 wins, 2 defeats).
- The team has scored in 5 consecutive away league games.
Projected Villarreal lineup (4-4-2)
Luis Júnior – Pau Navarro, Renato Veiga, Rafa Marín, Sergi Cardona – Taye Bakinson, Dani Parejo, Santi Comesaña, Alberto Moleiro – Nicolas Pépé, Ayoze Pérez.
Midfielders Pap Goué and Ilyas Ahamash are absent due to AFCON involvement. Defender Renato Veiga and midfielder Taye Bakinson are suspended. Injuries rule out defenders Logan Costa and Willy Kambwala, as well as forward Pau Cabanes.
Match prediction: Elche vs Villarreal
Elche are a distinctly strong home side who make life difficult for visiting teams. They remain unbeaten at the Manuel Martínez Valero this season, with more than half of those matches ending in victory (5 of 9). Sarabia's team have shown they can hold off opponents of varying quality, including a narrow defeat to Real Madrid where they looked capable of taking all three points.
Villarreal's recent defeat to Barcelona halted several impressive runs and leaves them needing a response, but they now face a tough trip to an uncomfortable opponent. The Yellow Submarine have won just 3 of the last 9 head-to-head La Liga meetings (4 draws, 2 defeats), with all of those wins coming at home. Over their last four away league visits to Elche, Villarreal have collected only 2 points from a possible 12.
Prediction – Elche win or draw
* For each team the starting lineup is taken from their previous match in this competition.
