Two teams struggling at the wrong end of the table will lock horns in Spain's top flight on Saturday evening as an underperforming Getafe welcome Real Valladolid.
Getafe have only picked up 17 points from their 14 matches this season to sit down in 14th position, just two points above 18th-placed Valladolid, who have managed just three league wins in 2020-21.
Match preview
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Getafe have won four, drawn five and lost six of their 15 league matches this season, picking up 17 points to occupy 14th, just two points clear of the relegation zone.
Jose Bordalas's side have finished eighth, fifth and eighth in their last three campaigns, meaning that it has been an underwhelming start to the season for the capital outfit.
Getafe have only actually won one of their last 10 in the league but have shown signs of improvement in recent weeks, taking four points off Cadiz and Celta Vigo before narrowly losing at leaders Atletico Madrid on Wednesday night courtesy of a goal from Luis Suarez.
The Madrid club will have targeted their next three games against Valladolid, Elche and Huesca as the ideal opportunity to put some more victories on the board, but they have only managed four league wins this season during a poor start.
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Valladolid have also shown improvement in recent weeks, losing just two of their last eight La Liga fixtures, recording three wins in the process, but the run has not moved them out of the relegation zone.
Indeed, a return of 15 points from 16 matches has left them in 18th position in the table, although they are only two points from 13th-placed Alaves, which is an indication of how things stand in Spain's top flight.
Valladolid will enter this weekend's contest off the back of a goalless draw at Cadiz on Tuesday night, and Sergio Gonzalez's side also managed to claim a point away to Sevilla on December 19.
The White and Violets, who finished 13th in La Liga last season, suffered a 2-0 defeat to Getafe in the corresponding match last term, but the two sides played out a 1-1 draw in Valladolid back in June.
Getafe La Liga form: DLLWDL
Getafe form (all competitions): LLWWDL
Real Valladolid La Liga form: DLWDLD
Real Valladolid form (all competitions): LWWDLD
Team News
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Getafe will be without the services of Cucho Hernandez through suspension, but Erick Cabaco, Allan Nyom, Damian Suarez have all now served bans and are available to return to the side.
Head coach Bordalas is expected to shuffle his pack from the defeat to Atletico, with Nyom, Suarez and Mauro Arambarri all in line to return to the starting XI.
Enes Unal is also pushing for a spot in the final third of the field, but Angel is expected to retain his spot alongside Jaime Mata, with Marc Cucurella operating on the left.
As for Valladolid, Joaquin Fernandez, Saidy Janko and Kiko Olivas remain unavailable for selection, while the visitors could also be without the services of key forward Maranhao.
Sergi Guardiola started against Cadiz in Maranhao's absence and that could again be the case this weekend, with Shon Weissman set to continue in the final third of the field.
Jota, Kike Perez and Fede are options for change, but Sergio could keep faith with the side that started the goalless draw last time out, with Fabian Orellana and Oscar Plano featuring in the wide positions.
Getafe possible starting lineup:
Yanez; Suarez, Dakonam, Etxeita, Olivera; Nyom, Maksimovic, Arambarri, Cucurella; Angel, Mata
Real Valladolid possible starting lineup:
Masip; Hervias, Bruno, El Yamiq, Garcia; Orellana, Mesa, Alcaraz, Plano; Weissman, Guardiola
We say: Getafe 1-1 Real Valladolid
Both managers will be viewing this match as the ideal chance to put another three points on the board, but we are struggling to separate them on this occasion. Valladolid have shown improvement in recent weeks and are capable of holding Getafe to a low-scoring draw in the Spanish capital.
Top betting tip
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 36.05%. A win for Real Valladolid had a probability of 32.95% and a draw had a probability of 31%.
The most likely scoreline for a Getafe win was 1-0 with a probability of 14.06%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (7.18%) and 2-1 (6.9%). The likeliest Real Valladolid win was 0-1 (13.24%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 0-0 (13.77%). The actual scoreline of 0-1 was predicted with a 13.2% likelihood.
