TipResumen

VILLARREAL

It has been twelve years since Villarreal reached the Semi Final of the Champions League and then came so close to beating Arsenal, but they have been striving for a return to that competition in recent years. They were actually relegated out of the Spanish Primera Division at the end of the 2011/12 season, the last time they played in the Champions League Group Stage, but Villarreal have returned to the top flight and finished no lower than 6th in the last five seasons. Last season it was a 5th place finish for Villarreal, but they were some way short of Valencia in the top four and that means another Europa League campaign is in the offing for the club. Winning the title is not a realistic ambition for Villarreal but they will believe the top four could be an open race for the final position behind Barcelona, Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid especially if Valencia struggle to cope with Champions League and La Liga fixtures to be played. Home form was very important for Villarreal who finished with an 11-3-5 record in front of their own fans, but they will need to at least match that if they are going to finish one place higher up the League table. Villarreal ended last season with a single loss from their final 7 League games, while they had won 3 in a row here before the 2-2 draw with Real Madrid. Santi Cazorla has returned to Villarreal but his best days look behind him having been sidelined by injury in the last couple of years at Arsenal.



REAL SOCIEDAD

A season without European Football awaits Real Sociedad but it may be a blessing in disguise as they look to operate much higher up the La Liga table this time around. Last season they ended with their joint lowest League finish since their 15th place landing spot in the 2010/11 season but Real Sociedad fans will point out the last couple of times they have finished 12th has seen the club respond with a top half finish the following season. The expectation is that Real Sociedad will be much higher up the League table knowing they have a lot of time to prepare for each fixture they play without having the distraction of European Football during the week. One of the main ways they can improve on their 12th place finish from the 2017/18 season is by improving the 4-4-11 away record they ended the last campaign with. It has been a difficult pre-season for Real Sociedad, but they did finish up their competitive fixtures with 5 wins from their last 8 League games. However they did only win 1 of their last 14 away games in all competitions and Real Sociedad slipped to defeat in 10 of those including the last 3 in a row. Mikel Merino and Theo Hernandez have been the big arrivals at Real Sociedad this summer and both potentially make their debut this weekend.



HEAD TO HEAD

Both Villarreal and Real Sociedad won their home League fixture against the other last season with the game here finishing 4-2. Villarreal are unbeaten in 6 home games against Real Sociedad and they have won 4 of those games.



PREDICTION

There will be some real optimism in both the Villarreal and Real Sociedad dressing rooms that they can improve on their 2017/18 seasons although the level of expectation is different for both clubs. Villarreal have to be chasing a Champions League berth having been in and around those places for the last five seasons. However for Real Sociedad the goal may be a top half finish and an outside shot at returning to European Football. As we approach the opening fixture the players will believe they can overachieve and I think this could be a good game of football between two clubs who have match up well in recent years. Goals flowed last season with at least three shared out in both League games, but it has proven to be home advantage which is the biggest edge Villarreal and Real Sociedad have had over the other. There has only been 1 away win from the last 7 fixtures between these clubs, while Villarreal have been particularly dominant having won 4 of their last 6 at home against this opponent. Last season Villarreal showed how strong they can be in front of their own fans and only the top four managed more home wins than they did and they have won 11 home League games in back to back years. I will look for them to get off to a positive start at home this time around too, although I am going to back Villarreal on the Asian Handicap against an opponent that can give them troubles when at their best.