Osasuna vs Almeria predictions and match preview for Saturday’s LaLiga fixture. Read on for analysis, team news and predicted lineups as the hosts return from their Cup Final defeat last week.
| Date | Saturday 13th May 2023 |
| Kick-Off | 16:15 (CEST) |
| Stadium | El Sadar |
| Competition | LaLiga |
Osasuna vs Almeria Preview
El Sadar is the setting for this showdown between Copa del Rey Finalists Osasuna and relegation-threatened Almeria. It’s a more important game for the visitors who have five games to save themselves from an immediate return to the second tier.
For Osasuna, it’s their first game since a 2-1 defeat to Real Madrid in Seville in last weekend’s cup Final. It was one of the biggest days in the club’s history at Osasuna players certainly did not let themselves down, briefly levelling the game through Lucas Torro’s fine strike. While there’ll be a tinge of disappointment that they couldn’t deliver the first major trophy, they are sure to be well received again by their supporters here after a fantastic cup run.
As far as Jagoba Arrasate is concerned, attention will quickly turn to the league and trying to stage a late European push. They are 10th currently, but only 3 points off 7th which will be enough for a place in the Conference League. There are five teams in contention for that position though so it’ll need to be a really strong end to the season for Osasuna to stand a chance and this feels like a “must win” game from that point of view.
Almeria are the side with the second worst away record in the division with only 7 points from 16 road games so far this term. That’s the main reason they are in any sort of danger as they’ve been pretty good at the Power Horse Stadium, but Rubi will be hoping his team have turned a corner on their travels after the recent 2-1 triumph at Getafe, their first away win of the season.
From a neutral perspective, Almeria have certainly been a good watch of late. All of their last 9 games have seen both teams score. They’ve not kept a clean sheet since stunning leaders Barcelona 1-0 in February with that game a rare example of defensive solidity this term. Things have been going much better at the other end with Luis Suarez doing a good job of leading the line following an injury to El Bilal Toure.
Team News & Possible Lineups
Osasuna
| INJURED | Brasanac, Vidal |
| DOUBTFUL | |
| BANNED | Herrando |
Possible XI: Aitor – Cruz, David Garcia, Aridane, Pena – Moncayola, Torro, Moi Gomez – Abde, Budimir, Chimy (4-3-3)
Coach: Jagoba Arrasate
Almeria
| INJURED | Toure, Kaiky, Svidersky |
| DOUBTFUL | |
| BANNED |
Possible XI: Fernando – Centelles, Ely, Babic, Pozo – Robertone, Melero, De La Hoz – Baptistao, Luis Suarez, Embarba (4-3-3)
Coach: Rubi
Score Prediction: Osasuna 2-1 Almeria
Some teams struggle to get going so soon after a cup Final, but neither Arrasate nor the El Sadar crowd is likely to let any complacency slip in here and Osasuna’s shot at European qualification should also be a motivating factor. We should see a strong XI from the home team, which hasn’t always been the case in LaLiga in recent weeks, and they ought to have enough to see off Almeria.
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