Sevilla will be looking to make it back-to-back wins in La Liga when they continue their 2020-21 campaign at home to Celta Vigo on Saturday night.
Julen Lopetegui's side have only picked up 10 points from their seven league matches this season to sit 12th in the table, while Celta are 17th, having collected just seven points from nine fixtures.
Match preview
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Sevilla enjoyed an excellent 2019-20 campaign as they finished fourth in La Liga in addition to winning the Europa League, but it would be fair to say that their league form this season has been disappointing.
Three wins, one draw and three defeats - that is how Lopetegui's team have performed in Spain's top flight this term, picking up 10 points to leave themselves in 12th position in the table.
Sevilla actually lost three straight league matches to Granada, Eibar and Athletic Bilbao between October 17 and October 31, but they managed to record a 1-0 win over Osasuna before the international break.
The Europa League holders have also made a positive start to their Champions League campaign, picking up seven points from three matches to sit second in Group E, level on points with Chelsea.
Los Nervionenses will be determined to make it successive league wins this weekend, but they only collected one point from their two matches with Celta during the 2019-20 La Liga campaign.
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Celta, meanwhile, have only won one of their nine league matches this season, picking up seven points in total to sit 17th in the table, just one point outside of the relegation zone.
Huesca and Levante will both play before Celta take to the field for this match, meaning that the Sky Blues could be inside the relegation zone by the time that kickoff arrives.
Celta actually sacked Oscar Garcia as head coach following the 1-1 draw with Elche before the international break, with Eduardo Coudet now in charge of first-team affairs.
Coudet has previously been in charge of Rosario Central, Club Tijuana, Racing Club and Internacional, but the 46-year-old does not have any European managerial experience.
The Celts have finished 17th in La Liga in each of the last two campaigns, and it does appear that it will be another tough season for a club battling to stay in the top flight.
Sevilla La Liga form: WDLLLW
Sevilla form (all competitions): DLWLWW
Celta Vigo La Liga form: LLLDLD
Team News
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Sevilla will be without the services of Carlos Fernandez due to a positive coronavirus test, while Jesus Navas and Suso are on the sidelines through injury.
Lopetegui is expected to make changes from the side that started against Osasuna before the international break, with Luuk de Jong, Ivan Rakitic and Munir El Haddadi all likely to return to the XI.
Navas's enforced absence should see Sergio Escudero come into the starting side, but Joan Jordan and Fernando are expected to keep their spots in the middle of the park.
As for Celta, Emre Mor, Kevin Vazquez and Sergio Alvarez are unavailable through injury, but Jose Fontan is available after missing the clash with Elche through suspension.
Iago Aspas is certain to start in the final third of the field, and the former Liverpool attacker could be joined by Nolito and Denis Suarez as part of a fluid front three.
Fran Beltran for Santi Mina is an alteration that could occur, but the bulk of the side that started the team's last match are expected to take to the field once again despite the change of manager.
Sevilla possible starting lineup:
Bounou; Escudero, Kounde, Carlos, Acuna; Rakitic, Fernando, Jordan; Munir, L De Jong, Ocampos
Celta Vigo possible starting lineup:
Blanco; Mallo, Aidoo, Murillo, Olaza; Mendez, Tapia, Beltran; Nolito, Aspas, Suarez
We say: Sevilla 2-0 Celta Vigo
Sevilla have been far from their best in the league this season, while Celta could be boosted by a change of manager. The hosts will be determined to make it back-to-back victories in Spain's top flight, though, and we are finding it difficult to back anything other than a routine success for Lopetegui's team.
Top betting tip
Matt Law
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 56.59%. A draw had a probability of 26.5% and a win for Celta Vigo had a probability of 16.95%.
The most likely scoreline for a Sevilla win was 1-0 with a probability of 17.22%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (12.71%) and 2-1 (8.54%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 0-0 (11.67%), while for a Celta Vigo win it was 0-1 (7.85%). The actual scoreline of 4-2 was predicted with a 0.5% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Sevilla would win this match.
