Villarreal will look to extend an eye-catching run of form on Saturday, when they travel to take on Osasuna.
A five-game unbeaten run has seen Unai Emery's side climb into the top six of the La Liga table, while their hosts sit 11th after back-to-back defeats.
Match preview
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Osasuna have had a season defined by noticeable ups and downs in La Liga, having started in particularly impressive fashion before going 10 games without a victory between late October and early January.
Jagoba Arrasate's men would then bounce back, recording wins over Cadiz, Granada and Rayo Vallecano in a five-match span, with the latter being an eye-catching 3-0 thrashing away from home thanks to goals from Jon Moncayola, Ruben Garcia and Kike Garcia.
However, Los Rojillos have experienced another dip in recent weeks, with that victory firstly followed by a defeat to Atletico Madrid by the same scoreline before they were narrowly beaten 1-0 by Real Sociedad last time out as Aritz Elustondo hit the only goal of the game.
While they will not be overly disheartened by defeats in two particularly tough games, Arrasate's men have now dropped back down to 11th spot, and they will be keen to return to winning ways sooner rather than later, albeit with the schedule not getting any easier.
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They face another difficult test as Villarreal arrive looking to stretch an unbeaten run to seven games, having won four of their last five La Liga outings.
After a relatively slow start to the season, Unai Emery's men have certainly found their form in recent months, going on a six-match winning run around the turn of the year before being briefly halted.
The Yellow Submarine have since bounced back from a minor setback in impressive fashion, dishing out defeats to Mallorca, Real Betis and Granada alongside a commendable stalemate with league leaders Real Madrid and a 1-1 draw in the first leg of their Champions League round-of-16 tie with Italian giants Juventus.
Most recently, Emery's side hosted Espanyol, and they recorded a 5-1 thrashing as Yeremi Pino hit four goals before Boulaye Dia capped off a dominant showing with a fifth late on.
As a result, they have now climbed within reach of the top four, and they will look to leapfrog Real Sociedad, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona with another victory at the weekend.
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Team News
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Jesus Areso should continue to be Osasuna's only absentee, as the defender remains confined to the treatment room.
The midfield unit of Jon Moncayola, Lucas Torro and Darko Brasanac has rarely been changed, while the likes of Ante Budimir and Kike Garcia will battle to lead the line.
While Villarreal's injury issues have reduced recently, Francis Coquelin, Ruben Pena and key forward Gerard Moreno are all ruled out, while Paco Alcacer is not expected to return in time to feature.
Teenage winger Yeremi Pino has been somewhat of a breakout star this season, and, after netting four goals last time out, he will come into Saturday's game with an abundance of confidence.
He should again support Arnaut Danjuma, who has netted 12 goals in 23 appearances across La Liga and Champions League action this term.
Tottenham Hotspur loanee Giovani Lo Celso is also likely to be deployed in an advanced role, with Etienne Capoue and Dani Parejo set to operate at the base of midfield.
Osasuna possible starting lineup:
Herrera; Vidal, D Garcia, Cruz, Sanchez; Moncayola, Torro, Brasanac; K Garcia, Budimir, R Garcia
Villarreal possible starting lineup:
Rulli; Aurier, Torres, Albiol, Estupinan; Parejo, Capoue; Pino, Lo Celso, Chukwueze; Danjuma
We say: Osasuna 0-2 Villarreal
Given that their confidence will be sky-high, we back Villarreal to extend their eye-catching run of form at the weekend.
Emery's men certainly look to have clicked recently, and we expect them to return home with all three points.
Top tip
Sam Varley
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 Villarreal win with a probability of 57.16%. A draw had a probability of 23.2% and a win for Osasuna had a probability of 19.61%.
The most likely scoreline for a Villarreal win was 0-1 with a probability of 11.83%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-2 (10.49%) and 1-2 (9.8%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.04%), while for a Osasuna win it was 1-0 (6.23%). The actual scoreline of 1-0 was predicted with a 6.2% likelihood.
