Fresh from their Champions League group-stage opener against Inter Milan, Real Sociedad will switch their attention back to La Liga on Sunday, welcoming Getafe to the Reale Arena.
The home side sit down in 11th position in the table, boasting six points from their opening five matches, while Getafe are ninth, having picked up seven points from their first five games of 2023-24.
Match preview
© Reuters
Real Sociedad are yet to really get going in La Liga this season, winning one, drawing three and losing one of their five matches to collect six points, which has left them in 11th position in the table.
The Basque outfit started their league campaign with three straight draws against Girona, Celta Vigo and Las Palmas before recording a 5-3 win over Granada before the international break.
Real Sociedad's first defeat of the season came at Real Madrid last weekend, while they were in Champions League action on Wednesday evening, opening their group-stage campaign against Inter Milan.
Brais Mendez's fourth-minute goal looked to be handing Imanol Alguacil's side all three points in their first Group D fixture, but Lautaro Martinez netted a late equaliser for the Italian giants.
It is therefore four draws from six competitive matches for the White and Blues this season, and the fixtures do not exactly get easier, with Valencia, Athletic Bilbao and Atletico Madrid to come in their three league games after this one, while their next European match is away to Red Bull Salzburg on October 3.
© Reuters
Getafe, meanwhile, will enter this match off the back of a 3-2 success over Osasuna last weekend, with Mason Greenwood making his debut as a second-half substitute.
The two teams were level heading into the final exchanges, but Getafe won it courtesy of an 86th-minute effort from Nemanja Maksimovic, with the result moving Jose Bordalas's side onto seven points from five matches, which has left them in ninth position in the table.
The capital side opened their season with a goalless draw at home to the champions Barcelona before losing 3-0 at Girona, but they were back to winning ways on August 28, overcoming Alaves on home soil.
The Deep Blue Ones only narrowly lost (2-1) at Real Madrid before the international break, meanwhile, so there have been plenty of encouraging signs in the early weeks of the campaign.
Getafe, who have finished 15th in each of the last three La Liga seasons, have only been victorious in one of their last six league games against Real Sociedad, with the Basque side running out 2-0 winners in the corresponding fixture last term.
- D
- D
- D
- W
- L
- D
- D
- D
- W
- L
- D
- D
- L
- W
- L
- W
Team News
© Reuters
Real Sociedad will again be missing Aritz Elustondo and Martin Merquelanz through injury this weekend, but the team did not pick up any fresh fitness problems against Inter.
There are not expected to be any major surprises when it comes to the home side's XI here, with a 4-3-3 formation set to include Mikel Oyarzabal and Takefusa Kubo in the forward positions.
Head coach Alguacil might make a change in the attack, though, with Mohamed-Ali Cho potentially coming in for Ander Barrenetxea, while Umar Sadiq is also pushing to be introduced into the side.
Getafe, meanwhile, are once again expected to have Greenwood in their squad, with the on-loan Manchester United attacker potentially making his second appearance for the club off the bench.
There will be no Fabrizio Angileri due to the red card that he received as a substitute against Osasuna last weekend, while Luis Milla and Enes Unal are both injured.
Carles Alena could potentially be handed a recall, but it might otherwise be the side that started the team's last match, with Juanmi Latasa and Borja Mayoral operating as the front two.
Real Sociedad possible starting lineup:
Remiro; Traore, Zubeldia, Le Normand, Tierney; Mendez, Zubimendi, Merino; Kubo, Oyarzabal, Cho
Getafe possible starting lineup:
Soria; Suarez, Duarte, Mitrovic, Rico; Alena, Dakonam, Maksimovic, Mata; Latasa, Mayoral
We say: Real Sociedad 2-1 Getafe
Real Sociedad have been tough to beat this season, but there have been too many draws early on. It would not be a surprise to see another stalemate here, as Getafe are playing well at the moment, but we are backing the hosts to navigate their way to an important three points.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
