Preview: Osasuna vs. Espanyol - prediction, team news, lineups

Following their promotion back to the top flight last season, Espanyol will kick off their La Liga campaign with a trip to Osasuna on Saturday.

The visitors topped the Segunda Division last season to make an instant return, while their hosts eventually finished 11th in their third straight season in La Liga.

Match preview

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At the half-way point of last season, Osasuna found themselves in the bottom three of the La Liga table, hugely threatened by the drop after an impressive 10th-placed finish the year before in their first campaign back in the Spanish top flight.

However, a vastly improved run of results, including a run of six games that produced four victories and 12 points in January and February, saw them jump out of the drop zone and begin to climb the table.

Towards the end of the season, a run of five league games without a defeat, including back-to-back victories over Villarreal and Valencia, saw Jagoba Arrasate's men move well clear of the relegation zone, eventually finishing in 11th spot with a commendable tally of 44 points from 38 matches.

While that was eight points fewer than they managed in the 2019-20 season, Los Rojillos did crucially consolidate their position in La Liga again, and Arrasate will now feel they are well set up to push for a top-half finish in the upcoming campaign.

Their opponents return to the top flight after a brief spell in the second tier, winning the league at the first time of asking.

Espanyol finished at the foot of the La Liga table in the 2019-20 season, being relegated with just 25 points, but they headed into the Segunda Division with the confidence to bounce straight back up.

The Periquitos found themselves in a heated battle for promotion throughout the entire campaign, never dropping below fourth place, and they eventually regained top spot in March, in the midst of a 15-game unbeaten run in league action.

Despite a disappointing run at the end of the season, the work was already done by Espanyol, as they eventually finished level on points with second-placed Mallorca and led on goal difference.

They were propelled to promotion by an impressive balance of defence and attack, with their 71 goals scored being 10 more than any other side, while no team shipped fewer than the 28 goals that the Periquitos shipped in 42 league outings.

They now head back into the top flight with the aim of establishing themselves as a regular La Liga outfit once again, with the ultimate objective of avoiding the bottom three in their first campaign.

Team News

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Osasuna will have to deal with the absences of Adrian Lopez, Rober Ibanez and Aridane Hernandez, as all three are out of action with injuries.

Juan Cruz is also a doubt, opening up a space for new signing Jose Angel to start at left-back.

The line should certainly be led by Croatian forward Ante Budimir, who hit 11 goals in 30 league outings last season in a loan spell from Mallorca, and has since been captured permanently.

Espanyol made an impressive summer signing with the capture of Miguelon, heading into the La Liga campaign, but his availability is doubtful due to a slight injury, while Keidi Bare and Landry Dimata could also miss out.

Their key man will be attacker Raul de Tomas, who fired the Periquitos to promotion last season with 23 league goals, the most in the second tier last campaign.

Osasuna possible starting lineup:

Herrera; Vidal, D Garcia, U Garcia, Angel; Torro, Sanjurjo; Barja, R Garcia, Avila; Budimir

Espanyol possible starting lineup:

Diego Lopez; Gomez, Cabrera, Calero, Pedrosa; David Lopez, Merida; Embarba, Melendo, Ribaudo; Tomas

We say: Osasuna 1-1 Espanyol

Osasuna impressed last season, and will be keen to build again this year, while their opponents come in with momentum from last campaign and will be desperate to avoid the drop this time around.

On this occasion, we see the sides sharing the points in a cagey opening affair, despite Osasuna potentially boasting the slightly stronger squad.