Villarreal Vs Granada Prediction And Betting Tips

Villarreal vs Granada Match Preview

Villarreal host Granada at the El Madrigal on Sunday in La Liga. The Yellow Submarine are looking to extend their unbeaten run in the league to seven games. Having blown hot and cold all season, the fallen giants seem to have finally anchored their ship, with Marcelino’s side even beating Real Sociedad 3-1 away from home in their last clash.

Nonetheless, with 29 points from 26 games, Villarreal are down in 13th position of the La Liga table, a massive 13 points off European places. The club has already seen three managerial changes, with Quique Setien and Pacheta both getting axed midway through the campaign. Marcelino, who had managed the side for three years between 2013 and 2016, was back at the helm. Although he took his time to settle in, but the Spaniard is slowly turning the tides at the club. They are now 11 points clear of relegation, having flirted with the bottom-three for quiet some time earlier on.

Also Read: Luka Modric’s Contribution Helps Real Madrid Maintain Their Lead in La Liga Standings | GW 26

Granada, though, are stuck in the battle for survival. The Andalusian side are down in 19th place in the top-flight rankings with a mere 14 points from 25 games. Only Almeria (9) have accrued fewer at this stage. They’ve won only twice all season, but like Villarreal, seem to be turning their fortunes around lately.

The Nazaries, back in the first division after a year in the second tier, are unbeaten in their last three games, drawing all of them. This includes a stunning 3-3 draw away to Barcelona. Granada had nearly pulled off an epic victory in Catalonia, but conceded an equalizer in the 80th minute, much to their chagrin. Nonetheless, the match demonstrated their fighting spirit, and showed the side isn’t going down so easily.

Villarreal vs Granada Team News and Predicted XI

Villarreal

The Yellow Submarine have quite a few injuries to contend with. Yeremy Pino and Denis Suarez have been ruled out for the remainder of the season after sustaining their respective injuries. Pino underwent surgery in his cruciate ligament following a knock in November last year, whereas Suarez is nursing a rupture in his tendon.

Juan Foyth has a shoulder injury while Alfonso Pedraza has sprained his ankle. Both are expected to be available only at the end of March. Ramon Terrats is another player unavailable for the weekend’s clash as he’s down with a meniscus injury.

Predicted XI: Filip Jorgensen; Yerson Mosquera, Raul Albiol, Eric Bailly, Alberto Moreno; Ilias Akhomach, Francis Coquelin, Santo Comesana, Alex Baena; Goncalo Guedes, Gerard Moreno

Granada

The Nazaries have a fully fit squad at their disposal. Myrto Uzuni might keep his place as their lone striker after netting against Almeria in their last clash. But Gerard Gumbau might come back into the lineup after making an appearance off the bench in their last encounter.

Predicted XI: Augusto Batalla; Ricard Sanchez, Miguel Rubio, Kamil Piatkowski, Carlos Neva; Sergio Ruiz, Gerard Gumbau, Gonzalo Villar; Facundo Pellestri, Myrto Uzuni, Oscar Melendo

Villarreal vs Granada Head-To-Head

There have been 18 clashes between the sides before, with Villarreal beating Granada 10 times while losing only thrice.

Last 5 games, head-to-head

Granada 2-3 Villarreal (La Liga, October 2023)

Granada 1-4 Villarreal (La Liga, February 2022)

Villarreal 0-0 Granada (La Liga, August 2021)

Granada 0-3 Villarreal (La Liga, April 2021)

Villarreal 2-2 Granada (La Liga, January 2021)

As you can see, Villarreal have dominated their fixtures in recent times. In fact, the Valencia outfit haven’t lost to Granada since a 2-0 defeat in March 2014, a run that stretches back to 13 games. Villarreal have even scored at least thrice in their most recent two encounters, but have drawn their last three home games against the Andalusian outfit.