Two teams in danger of dropping out of Spain's top flight will lock horns at Estadio Manuel Martinez Valero on Tuesday evening as Elche welcome Alaves for a key encounter.
Elche are currently 19th in the La Liga table, one point behind 17th-placed Real Valladolid, while Alaves sit in 16th position, just two points outside of the bottom three approaching the final straight.
Match preview
© Reuters
The battle to stay in Spain's top flight this season is absolutely fascinating, with just three points separating the bottom five teams. Indeed, Eibar picked up a huge win over Getafe on Sunday afternoon to boost their own hopes of staying in the league, but 17th-placed Valladolid lost at Valencia.
Eibar remain bottom of the table on 29 points, one point behind 19th-placed Elche, who will have both Valladolid and 16th-placed Alaves in their sights, with all five teams having three games left.
Elche picked up an important win over Levante on April 24, but they have lost to Atletico Madrid and Real Sociedad in their last two matches to remain inside the relegation zone.
Fran Escriba's side, who were promoted to La Liga via the Segunda Division playoffs last term, will finish their campaign with games against Cadiz (A) and Athletic Bilbao (H).
Los Franjiverdes are still more than capable of pulling themselves away from danger, but a defeat in this match would leave them in a tough position ahead of their final two matches.
© Reuters
Alaves, meanwhile, will enter Tuesday's contest off the back of a 2-2 draw with Levante on Saturday, with Joselu scoring in the final exchanges to secure a point for the Basque outfit.
Javier Calleja has been in charge of Alaves since the start of last month and boasts a strong record at the helm, winning two, drawing three and losing just one of his six matches since replacing Abelardo.
El Glorioso are in their fifth straight season at this level of football and had finished ninth, 14th and 11th before ending the 2019-20 campaign in 16th spot.
The Basque club are currently 16th in the table, just two points clear of 18th-placed Huesca, and they would be pulled into deeper trouble with a defeat on Tuesday evening.
Alaves will also finish the season with two difficult matches, hosting a dangerous Granada on May 16 before a trip to Estadio Ramon to face Sevilla on the final weekend.
- L
- L
- D
- W
- L
- L
- D
- W
- W
- D
- L
- D
Team News
© Reuters
Elche will again be without the services of Johan Mojica due to a muscular problem, while Raul Guti will miss out through suspension, having received a red card in the defeat to Real Sociedad.
Head coach Escriba is expected to make changes from the side that started on Friday, with Ivan Marcone and Pablo Piatti in line for starts.
The home side are expected to line up in a 4-4-2 formation once again, though, with Pere Milla joining Lucas Boye as part of a front two.
As for Alaves, Javier Lopez is out for the remainder of the season with a hamstring problem, while Rodrigo Ely and Inigo Cordoba will again be unavailable for selection.
Burgui could potentially be fit after a slight muscular issue, but it would not be a surprise to see head coach Calleja select the same XI from the clash with Levante.
Pere Pons should shake off a knock to continue in a wide area, meaning that Lucas Perez, Edgar Mendez and on-loan Manchester United attacker Facundo Pellistri are expected to start on the bench.
Elche possible starting lineup:
Gazzaniga; Barragan, Verdu, Calvo, Palacios; Josan, Mfulu, Marcone, Piatti; Boye, Milla
Alaves possible starting lineup:
Pacheco; Navarro, Laguardia, Lejeune, Duarte; Pina, Battaglia; Pons, Jota, Rioja; Joselu
We say: Elche 0-0 Alaves
There is simply no downplaying the importance of this match to both sides, and the two managers will be desperate to avoid a defeat, which is expected to create a cagey affair. Elche ran out 2-0 winners earlier this season, but we can see the points being shared in a goalless draw here.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Elche win with a probability of 38.39%. A win for Alaves had a probability of 32.83% and a draw had a probability of 28.8%.
The most likely scoreline for a Elche win was 1-0 with a probability of 12.53%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (7.83%) and 2-0 (7.36%). The likeliest Alaves win was 0-1 (11.34%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.32%). The actual scoreline of 0-2 was predicted with a 6% likelihood.
