Sevilla's final chance to ensure that it is not a winless October will come at Nuevo Mirandilla on Saturday evening, when they take on Cadiz in Spain's top flight.
An underwhelming 2023-24 La Liga campaign to date has left Sevilla in 13th position in the table on nine points, while Cadiz are in 16th but also have nine points at this stage of proceedings.
Match preview
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Cadiz are enjoying their best run of La Liga football since the early 1990s, with the team competing at this level for the fourth season in a row, finishing 12th, 17th and 14th in their previous three.
The Yellow Submarine are expected to be one of a number of teams battling against the drop this season, and their start to the campaign is not all that surprising, boasting a record of two wins, three draws and five defeats from their 10 matches, which has left them in 16th position on nine points.
Sergio Gonzalez's side are only actually two points behind Getafe in 11th, so the picture could change quickly, but their recent form has been very disappointing, losing each of their last three to Atletico Madrid, Girona and Valencia.
Cadiz were last victorious against Villarreal at the start of September, but their home form has been relatively strong, winning two, drawing two and losing just one of their five games in front of their own supporters.
El Submarino Amarillo, who lost 2-0 at Valencia on Monday night, have not enjoyed their recent meetings with Sevilla, losing both fixtures last season, including a 2-0 defeat in the corresponding contest.
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Sevilla, meanwhile, are now two matches into Diego Alonso's reign as head coach, with the 48-year-old taking charge of his first La Liga game against Real Madrid last weekend.
Los Nervionenses took the lead against the league leaders in the 74th minute courtesy of an own goal from David Alaba, but Dani Carvajal levelled the scores in the 78th minute, with the two teams sharing the points.
Sevilla were then in Champions League action on Tuesday evening, suffering a 2-1 home defeat to Arsenal, with the disappointing result leaving them third in Group B on two points from three matches.
The Europa League holders are without a win in their last five games in all competitions, including their last three in the league, although two of those fixtures have been against Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Sevilla boast a record of two wins, three draws and four defeats from their nine league games this season, which has seen them collect nine points to sit 13th in the table; the supporters will be demanding an improvement in the coming months, as the team look to avoid a repeat of what was a disappointing 2022-23 campaign in Spain's top flight, finishing down in 12th position.
Team News
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Cadiz will again be missing Luis Hernandez, Fede San Emeterio and Brian Ocampo for this weekend's contest due to injury problems, while Robert Navarro is suspended following his red card against Valencia.
The squad will be boosted by the returns of Ruben Alcaraz and Darwin Machis, though, and both players are expected to be re-introduced into the starting side for this contest.
Head coach Sergio could make an alteration in the final third of the field, meanwhile, with Sergi Guardiola potentially getting the nod over Maxi Gomez to start alongside Chris Ramos.
As for Sevilla, Fernando, Marcao and Alfonso Pastor are still absent due to injury problems, but the team did not suffer any fresh issues against Arsenal last time out.
Head coach Alonso could select the same XI for a third match in succession, with Lucas Ocampos and Dodi Lukebakio again expected to support Youssef En-Nesyri in the final third of the field.
There are plenty of options for change in the advanced areas, with Erik Lamela, Mariano Diaz, Rafa Mir and Suso all available, but Alonso is attempting to build some consistency early in his tenure, so it would not be a surprise to see the same group of players feature again from the first whistle.
Cadiz possible starting lineup:
Ledesma; Carcelen, Mere, Fali, J Hernandez; Alejo, Escalante, Alcaraz, Machis; Ramos, Guardiola
Sevilla possible starting lineup:
Nyland; Navas, Gudelj, Ramos, Acuna; Sow, Soumare, Rakitic; Lukebakio, En-Nesyri, Ocampos
We say: Cadiz 0-1 Sevilla
Sevilla were impressive against Real Madrid last weekend and were not too far away from securing a positive result against Arsenal earlier this week. Cadiz, though, are struggling at the moment, and we are backing Sevilla to navigate their way to what would be an important three points this weekend.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Matt Law
