Villarreal vs Girona
Villarreal and Girona finished in the top 10 of the league last season, with the former even competing for European football. However, the two teams are still winless after two games—one draw and one defeat—in the Spanish top flight.
Sure enough, a win this Matchday 3 of La Liga would be a welcome boost to both clubs. Unfortunately, as they play against each other, one has to give way.
Villarreal will hope to use their home court to their advantage, but Girona have history to look at in their visit to the Estadio de la Ceramica.
Talking Points
Villarreal may still be winless, but they did convince their fans that their struggles won’t be for long. After all, their goalless draw with Sevilla the last time out showed they have what it takes to compete with the other heavyweights of the game.
The Yellow Submarine have plenty of standout players last weekend, particularly Santi Cazorla who produced some of the best La Liga 2018 highlights of Matchday 2 with his performance in the midfield.
The former Arsenal midfielder left the Premier League and the Emirates on a free at the end of last season after what had been an injury-riddled spell with the Gunners. He decided to rejoin his former club Villarreal this summer in hopes of revitalising what seems to be a fading career.
And sure enough, Cazorla was off to a good start and seemed to be on his way back with a spectacular performance against the Sevillistas—a game which saw him display excellent touches and great ball distribution.
It was his first 90 minute of competitive football action, and Villarreal will undoubtedly expect more of the same performance from the diminutive Spanish magician when they host Girona.
Villarreal’s offence shouldn’t be ignored too. While they failed to find the back of the net against Sevilla, it was more an anomaly rather than offensive deficiency.
They have a frontline headed by Carlos Bacca and Gerard Moreno who combined for a total of 31 La Liga goals last year. Bacca was the top scorer for Villarreal in the 2017/18 campaign, while Moreno spearheaded the Espanyol attack before going back to the Yellow Submarine last June.
Moreno scored in their opener against Real Sociedad while Bacca is yet to get on the scoresheet. However, after the team’s 16 shots (six on target) at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, it’s only a matter of time before they get rolling.
Girona, for their part, did well on offence against Real Madrid and could have scored more in their 1-4 loss to the reigning Champions League winners. Nonetheless, they made plenty of uncharacteristic mistakes on the defensive end that led to their downfall.
Gironistes recently added Ivory Coast striker Seydou Doumbia to bolster their attack, but it’s doubtful if he’ll be ready to feature for the team in this upcoming clash.
One bad news for the Catalan team is the reported interest of Marseille on their top striker Cristhian Stuani. If the French club decides to make a move for the Uruguayan star and pay his €16 million buyout, Stuani could already be out of Girona before they visit la Ceramica.
History
Villarreal and Girona split their meetings last season, with the Catalan club actually edging out the Yellow Submarine in their visit.
Girona beat Villarreal by two goals in a March meeting last campaign, courtesy of goals from Stuani and Anthony Lozano. Meanwhile, in Villarreal’s trip to Girona, they edged out the home team with a 1-2 scoreline.
Stuani was also on target in that game, while Villarreal got a brace from Cedric Bakambu. Unfortunately for Javier Calleja’s side, the Congo international is no longer with them after his February transfer deadline move to China.
The two teams have met four times since 2012, twice in the Segunda Division, and have also shared those fixtures with a win and a loss each.
Betting Tip
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Villarreal vs Girona | Villarreal Asian Handicap -1.00 @ 2.11 |
| September 01, 04:00 (GMT+8) |
Villarreal are obviously the better and deeper team, so it’s not surprising why the La Liga 2018 odds at SBOBET favour them to cruise to victory and seize their first full three points of the new campaign.
While Girona are capable of pulling off a win here, they haven’t really shown enough threat that would make one think that they can defy the odds. In contrast, Villarreal have been in excellent shape and were just unlucky not to win last week.
I honestly like what I have seen from the Yellow Submarine and their players, and I expect them to finally break out and get a convincing victory at home.
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