Sevilla vs Villarreal

Estadio Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan forms the backdrop for a handsomely-looking La Liga showdown between Sevilla and Villarreal.

Sevilla could convert two separate leads on Garcia Pimienta’s touchline debut on the opening La Liga weekend as the Spanish manager’s former side, Las Palmas, held the Andalusian team to a 2-2 draw. It wasn’t the best way to embark on their mission to better last season’s embarrassing 14th-place finish, yet there’s plenty of time for redemption. Pimienta knows in-depth about beating Villarreal, having bested this opposition in both top-flight encounters last term as Las Palmas boss. Determined to add another success to the tally, Pimienta can turn to Sevilla’s impressive record of winning 11 of their last 18 home league matches against Villarreal for inspiration (D5, L2). However, there’s no room for complacency, considering a late twist in the tale, which has seen Los Rojiblancos emerge victorious from only four of their last seven H2Hs here (L3).

In the meantime, Villarreal experienced the same fate as Sevilla in their opening-day clash against Atletico Madrid, throwing a first-half lead twice en route to a 2-2 draw at La Ceramica. With the August fixtures coming thick and fast, it’s up to manager Marcelino Garcia Toral to find the proper balance between his free-firing frontline and wracked defense. The visitors have conceded at least twice across their last six league outings, yet they only suffered one defeat during that stretch (W2, D3). Leaking goals at such an alarming rate increases the likelihood of another underwhelming result in Andalusia for Marcelino, who has only lost more La Liga matches to Real Madrid (15) and Barcelona (18) than against Sevilla (13).