Getafe could make it three wins in four successive La Liga outings when they entertain relegation candidates Alaves at the Coliseum Alfonso Perez on Sunday afternoon.
Alaves, who are yet to show any signs of improvement under new boss Abelardo, have succumbed to four league defeats in as many games and will be desperate to come away from the capital with all three points.
Match preview
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Having established themselves as a robust and resilient La Liga outfit in recent years, Jose Bordalas's Getafe side are slowly beginning to put their hugely discouraging start to the campaign behind them.
Despite being thrashed 5-1 by Marcelino's in-form Athletic Bilbao side last time out, El Geta have picked up some big wins so far in 2021, collecting six points from games against fellow strugglers Huesca and Elche.
Currently 13th in the table with 23 points, El Geta have successfully managed to distance themselves from the dreaded drop zone.
The club's change in fortunes can be attributed primarily to Bordalas's recruitment in the January transfer window.
With a focus on creativity and flair in the final third, La Liga starlets Carles Alena and Takefusa Kubo were brought in on loan and both have performed well for El Geta.
Still, Bordalas will be well aware that his side remain but a shadow of their former selves. The fact that Huesca are the only team that have led for fewer minutes than El Geta this season speaks volumes in regard to how much the Madrid-based outfit have struggled.
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There were celebrations in Vitoria-Gasteiz last week as Alaves commemorated their centenary. However, the club's optimism off the field failed to ignite much inspiration on it, with the team losing 4-1 to Real Madrid last time out at the Estadio de Mendizorroza.
El Glorioso's loss to the champions means that Abelardo's men have now won just once in their last nine league outings, leaving them 18th in the table.
It is unlikely that many Alaves fans were expecting instant miracles from Abelardo, who made his return to El Glorioso earlier this month, but few could have expected the appointment to go so awry.
Earlier this week, Abelardo told the media that "the only positive thing about not having an audience is that the players listen to you", but with his side having conceded nine goals over his first three games back at the club, it remains to be seen whether his players are paying any attention.
Abelardo's poor record against Getafe may also be giving the manager sleepless nights as he prepared for this clash, with the Alaves boss having only won once in six league games against Bordalas's men.
Getafe La Liga form: DLLWWL
Getafe form (all competitions): LLLWWL
Alaves La Liga form: WDLLLL
Alaves form (all competitions): LWLLLL
Team News
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Bordalas will be forced to tinker with his backline this weekend, with his skipper Djene Dakonam suspended for this tie.
Mathias Olivera, Enes Unal, Dario Poveda, Victor Mollejo and Cucho Hernandez are all also out injured.
Abelardo will be without the injured Rodrigo Ely and the suspended Edgar Mendez for this tie.
Mendez's absence is likely to prompt Abelardo into partnering Joselu with Lucas Perez upfront.
Getafe possible starting lineup:
Yanez; Suarez, Cabaco, Etxeita, Nyom; Kubo, Arambarri, Alena, Maksimovic, Cucurella; Mata
Alaves possible starting lineup:
Pacheco; Navarro, Laguardia, Lejeune, Duarte; Aguirregabiria, Battaglia, Pina, Rioja; Joselu, Perez
We say: Getafe 3-1 Alaves
Neither of these sides are exactly performing well this season, but Getafe definitely look more capable of winning this clash than El Glorioso, and we think they will do it in style.
Top betting tip
Francis Buchanan
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 Getafe win with a probability of 39.29%. A draw had a probability of 31% and a win for Alaves had a probability of 29.69%.
The most likely scoreline for a Getafe win was 1-0 with a probability of 15.06%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (8.08%) and 2-1 (7.19%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 0-0 (14.04%), while for an Alaves win it was 0-1 (12.5%). The actual scoreline of 0-0 was predicted with a 14% likelihood.
