Sevilla will be looking to end their four-game wait for a victory in La Liga when they take on relegation-threatened Leganes at the Estadio Municipal de Butarque on Tuesday.
Julen Lopetegui's side have drawn their last four matches to leave themselves with work to do in the race for a top-four finish, while Leganes have also struggled for victories and are seemingly destined for the drop.
Match preview
© Reuters
Sevilla made a winning return to La Liga action earlier this month with a 2-0 triumph over local rivals Real Betis, but since then they have only picked up four points from a possible 12.
As well as playing out a respectable goalless draw with Barcelona, Los Nervionenses have dropped points against Levante, Villarreal and Real Sociedad.
Friday's draw with Sociedad was arguably a point gained in many ways, though, as Lucas Ocampos scored from the penalty spot seven minutes from time to cancel out Kiko Olivas's first-half goal.
The succession of stalemates leaves Sevilla - unbeaten in 11 matches in all competitions - fourth in the table and now just five points ahead of Getafe, who play their game in hand against Sociedad on Monday.
Finishing in the top four was always the aim for Lopetegui, but in a season that has seen Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona struggle, it may well be a case of what could have been had his side shown a little more consistency at times.
© Reuters
Tuesday's trip to the Spanish capital does at least provide Sevilla with a chance to get back to winning ways against a Leganes side who have won just one of their last 10 matches.
That victory came against Villarreal in their last match prior to the coronavirus-enforced hiatus. Since returning to action, Los Pepineros have lost three and drawn two.
Saturday's defeat to Osasuna was as cruel as they come, with Enric Gallego netting a winner in the sixth minute of added time at El Sadar Stadium.
Leganes are now seven points from safety, a gap that could widen should 17th-place Eibar pick up a positive result in their game in hand against Granada on Sunday.
Either way, Javier Aguirre's side are running out of time to put victories on the board. After four seasons in La Liga, a return to the second tier now seems increasingly likely.
Leganes' La Liga form: WLLDDL
Sevilla's La Liga form: DWDDDD
Team News
© Reuters
Alexander Szymanowski has returned to training for the hosts and is expected to play again this season, although this match will come too soon.
Guido Carrillo and Oscar Rodriguez are the only other players Aguirre is without, struggling with thigh and muscle problems respectively.
Sevilla have reported a clean bill of health ahead of this midweek tussle, though Lopetegui may opt to make some changes to his side.
Oliver Torres and Joan Jordan are battling for a starting spot in central midfield, while Suso is pushing for inclusion after being named on the bench again last time out.
Leganes possible starting lineup:
Cuellar; Awaziem, Tarin, Siovas; Ruibal, Gil, Perez, Mesa, Rodrigues; Guerrero, Assale
Sevilla possible starting lineup:
Vaclik; Navas, Kounde, Carlos, Escudero; Vazquez, Fernando, Banega; Ocampos, De Jong, Munir
We say: Leganes 0-1 Sevilla
Three points will have to be the target for Leganes if they are to give themselves a realistic chance of avoiding the drop. Sevilla also have a lot to play for, however, and we are backing them to get their season back on track with victory in midweek.
Daniel Lewis
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Sevilla win with a probability of 46.78%. A draw had a probability of 27.2% and a win for Leganes had a probability of 26%.
The most likely scoreline for a Sevilla win was 0-1 with a probability of 13.27%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-2 (9.21%) and 1-2 (8.83%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (12.73%), while for a Leganes win it was 1-0 (9.18%). The actual scoreline of 0-3 was predicted with a 4.3% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Sevilla would win this match.
