Sevilla will be looking to return to winning ways in La Liga when they continue their domestic campaign at home to Rayo Vallecano on Saturday night.
Jorge Sampaoli's side are currently 16th in the table, boasting just 10 points from their opening 11 games of the season, while Rayo sit 10th on 15 points ahead of the next set of games in Spain's top flight.
Match preview
© Reuters
Sevilla have won two, drawn four and lost five of their 11 La Liga matches this season to collect 10 points, which has left them down in 16th spot in the table, only one point above the relegation zone and 12 points from fourth-placed Real Sociedad, which is an indication of their struggles this term.
For a team that won 18 league matches last season en route to finishing fourth, it has been a disastrous start, but there have been positive signs since Sampaoli replaced Julen Lopetegui as head coach earlier this month.
Los Nervionenses picked up four points from their league games with Mallorca and Valencia in the middle of October but were beaten 3-1 by Real Madrid at Bernabeu last weekend, which proved to be Sampaoli's first defeat since returning to Estadio Ramon for a second spell at the helm.
Sevilla will enter this match off the back of a morale-boosting win, though, having beaten Copenhagen 3-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday, which secured their spot in the Europa League.
There is still plenty of time for Rojiblancos to turn their campaign around, and a win on Saturday would be another step in the right direction, but they have only been victorious in one of their last five league matches with Rayo, suffering two defeats in the process.
© Reuters
Rayo will certainly be the fresher of the two teams on Saturday, having not been in action since recording a thumping 5-1 victory over Cadiz in La Liga last weekend.
The scores were actually level at the interval, but Isi Palazon, Alvaro Garcia, Florian Lejeune (twice) and Sergio Camello all netted in the second period to secure a huge victory for Andoni Iraola's side.
Rayo have collected 15 points from their 11 La Liga matches this season courtesy of a record of four wins, three draws and four defeats, which has left them up in 10th position in the table.
Los Vallecanos are bidding to make it back-to-back campaigns at this level of football for the first time since 2016, and the early indications are that they have more than enough quality to compete in Spain's top flight.
Rayo's strong recent record against Sevilla has seen them win two of their last three meetings in La Liga, although they have not been victorious at Estadio Ramon in the league since November 2014.
Team News
© Reuters
Sevilla are again expected to be missing Tanguy Nianzou, Fernando and Jesus Manuel Corona for this weekend's contest with Rayo.
Kike Salas, though, is back from a suspension, while Karim Rekik and Marcos Acuna were in the squad against Copenhagen after recovering from injury problems.
Head coach Sampaoli is likely to reward the majority of the players that impressed against Copenhagen in the Champions League, but Yassine Bounou will be back between the sticks, while there could be changes in the final third, with Erik Lamela and Youssef En-Nesyri both in line to return.
As for Rayo, Andres Martin will again be unavailable for selection due to a shoulder problem, while Randy Nteka is suspended due to the red card that he picked up against Cadiz.
The visitors are otherwise in strong shape, and it would not be a surprise to see head coach Iraola name the same XI that took to the field for the first whistle last time out.
Pep Chavarria and Unai Lopez are among the options for change, but Camello should again lead the line, while Alvaro Garcia and Palazon are set to continue in the wide positions.
Sevilla possible starting lineup:
Bounou; Montiel, Gudelj, Marcao, Telles; Rakitic, Jordan, Isco; Lamela, En-Nesyri, Gomez
Rayo Vallecano possible starting lineup:
Dimitrievski; Balliu, Lejeune, Catena, F Garcia; Palazon, Valentin, Comesana, A Garcia; Trejo, Camello
We say: Sevilla 2-1 Rayo Vallecano
This has the potential to be a very difficult match for Sevilla, and it would certainly not be a surprise to see Rayo pick up a positive result here. Sevilla will have home advantage, though, and we are backing Sampaoli's side to secure an important three points in Spain's top flight.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
