Eibar – Villarreal Prediction & Picks (28.02.2018)

Eibar and Villarreal face in the Municipal Stadium of Ipurúa, in a match for the 26 th round of the First Division. Villarreal won at home by (3-0) the last time they met in this edition of the league, on 01-10-2017. In this stadium, the history of direct confrontations indicates total balance between these two teams, since there was 1 draw and 1 win for each team in the last 3 matches. However, the last time these two teams played a match in this stadium was on 30-10-2016, for the First Division, which ended with the victory of Eibar by (2-1). The goals of the match were scored by Ramis (80 ‘) and Pedro León (87’), for Eibar, and Bruno (41 ‘), for Villarreal. In this game the home factor may be decisive, as Eibar has considerable differences in their results at home and as a visitor.

Eibar:

The home team is currently in the 8 th position of the league, with 35 points won, after 10 wins, 5 draws and 10 losses. In the penultimate match, they lost at home against Barcelona by (0-2). In the last match, they lost in an away match against Celta de Vigo, by (2-0). This is a team that usually makes good use of the home advantage, stronger with the help of its supporters, since in the last 30 matches they register 4 wins, 3 draws and 8 losses in away matches; against 7 wins, 3 draws and 5 losses at their stadium. In the last 10 home league matches Eibar has won 5, tied 3 and lost 2, for which they have won 18 points out of 30 possible. They have not been very strong defensively, since they have suffered goals in 9 of the last 10 matches, but their offense has scored frequently, since they have scored goals in 7 of the last 10 matches for this competition. In 25 matches in the competition, they suffered the first goal 14 times and only managed 1 comeback. In the last 13 home matches for this competition there is 1 period that stands out: they have conceded 7 of their 15 goals between minutes (16′-30 ‘).

Eibar has been performing quite well in this edition of the Spanish league, but it is not going through its best moment in the competition, as it comes from two consecutive defeats, a period in which it did not score any goals. The last of them was outside the home, against Celta de Vigo, in a game in which he finished almost twice as many times as the opponent, but without efficiency, leaving to desire also in defensive terms, suffering another setback. As it was possible to notice in that confrontation, the defensive system has not been acting in a very satisfactory way, since it is currently among the seven worst in the competition. One of the weaknesses of the club is the change of passes, an issue in which it has one of the highest error averages. The 4-4-2 must be the tactical formation used in that duel, without significant absences in the starting lineup.

Villarreal:

The away team is currently in the 5 th position of the league, with 41 points won, after 12 wins, 5 draws and 8 losses. In the penultimate match, they tied in an away match against Espanyol, by (1-1). In the last match, they won in a home match against Getafe, by (1-0). This is a team that usually maintains its competitive levels in home and away matches, since in the last 30 matches they register 6 wins, 4 draws and 5 losses in away matches, with 16 goals scored and 16 conceded; against 8 wins, 2 draws and 5 losses at their stadium, with 27 goals scored and 16 conceded. In the last 10 away matches for the championship, Villarreal has 4 wins, 3 draws and 3 losses, so they have won 15 points out of 30 possible. In their away matches there are a few frequent results at half-time: 0-1 (5 out of 12 matches) and 0-0 (5 out of 12 matches). Their offense has scored regularly, since they have scored at least one goal in each of the last 10 matches for this competition. In 25 matches in this competition, they have only 1 comeback in the 8 matches they have conceded the first goal. In the last 13 home matches for this competition there is 1 period that stands out: they have conceded 6 of their 17 goals between minutes (76′-90 ‘).

Villarreal enters the field for this game a little less pressured, having managed to rediscover the path of victory for the Spanish league, thus enclosing a fast that lasted three days, a period in which he accumulated two consecutive defeats. On the occasion, he played a very balanced game against Getafe, but managed to score a goal in the first minutes and maintained the advantage until the end. As he showed once again, the defensive system is doing a good job, since it is currently among the best eight of the competition. As a visitor, he conquered almost 50% of the points played and in that condition he did not suffer a goal four times. The Calleja team must go to the field organized in 4-4-2 or in 4-1-2-1-2, with highlights for Trigueros in the center of the field.