Saturday 19/04/2014, 19:30, Spain Primera Division, Round 34, Real Sociedad vs Espanyol

Real Sociedad vs Espanyol Betting Preview

Real Sociedad will be facing Villarreal in the final round of the regular season, in a match that could well decide the team that will be playing in Europa League later this year. Right now, their chances don't look too good, as they are trailing their rivals by one point and Valencia is coming from behind. Recent results are particularly worrisome for the hosts, as they only won a match in the last month, against lowly Valladolid.

Real Sociedad vs Espanyol Betting Odds

At Bet365

Real Sociedad 1.75, Draw 3.60, Espanyol 4.75

Real Sociedad vs Espanyol Betting Tips

Real Sociedad's hopes of winning most of the remaining rounds took a dive when striker Griezmann suffered an injury in the last round. He played just one half but that was enough for him to score the second goal for his team, although in the end it made no difference. The visitors' defense crumbled in the final 10 min. and allowed Celta Vigo to level the score and secure another season in Primera Division.
They won't be facing a highly motivated opponent tonight, as Espanyol is 10 points clear of the danger zone and has a relatively easy schedule ahead.

As early as the first week of March, it was fairly obvious that the second team from Barcelona will not have to worry about relegation. It comes as no surprise that they took the foot off gas and won just twice over that span.

Coach Aguire used to start with two strikers regardless of opponent, but now that his team is finally out of the woods, he rarely sends anyone to pair up with Sergio Garcia. As a result, the aging striker has amassed a total of 12 goals this season, but tonight he is unlikely to play the entire match. He will probably be replaced at half time by Argentinian Stuani or the promising Colombian Cordoba.

Key Facts

• Espanyol has just two absentees for tonight, Mationi and Moreno, but both of them are defenders and will add pressure on an already struggling backline
• Real Sociedad scored two goals against Espanyol in three of the last four matches and won eight times at home in 16 fixtures

Real Sociedad vs Espanyol Betting Odds Prediction

There is not much value in the odds offered by bookies for Real Sociedad to win, but this is the natural result of Espanyol's lack of motivation. The result only matters for the hosts, who are in dire need of points and are expected to come out firing on all cylinders. As long as Real Sociedad can protect an early lead, they should cruise to a comfortable victory, which makes it worth backing the hosts at 1.75 with bet365.

Bet: Real Sociedad @ 1.75 with Bet365