MADRID, Dec. 13 (EUROPA PRESS) –
CA Osasuna, RCD Mallorca and Girona FC will aim for victories this Saturday that could secure their position in the European places, while RC Celta prepare for a symbolic farewell match for Sevilla’s Jesús Navas at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán , during the matches corresponding to the 17th day of LaLiga EA Sports 2024-2025.
Of this trio of teams, two – RCD Mallorca, currently in eighth place with a game in hand, and Girona FC in ninth – will face off, separated by just two points in a head-to-head clash at Estadi Mallorca Son Moix (16:15 CET) as they look to regain their momentum.
The Balearics have lost their last two league matches, including a heavy 1-5 defeat to FC Barcelona at home in the Spanish Super Cup and a 2-0 defeat at ABANCA Balaídos against Celta. These setbacks have left them keen to secure three points to move further away from the relegation zone.
Jagoba Arrasate’s side need more solidity at home, where they have only managed 12 points out of a maximum of 27 this season, and they are struggling offensively, having scored just seven goals , and only managed to score more than one goal in a victory against Valencia. The Basque coach will be without key players, including captain Antonio Raíllo due to suspension and midfielder Samú Costa due to injury, as well as Valery Fernández, who is unavailable due to ‘ fear clause’.
On the other hand, Girona will look to resume their climb in the standings, stopped after drawing against Villarreal and suffering a clear defeat at home against Real Madrid, aiming to focus more on the climb rather than the zone of relegation, although they are currently in poor form.
Across all competitions, the Girona side have failed to win their last five matches, having suffered three defeats without scoring a goal in their last three outings, a trend which particularly penalized them in their recent encounter against Liverpool last Tuesday. Coach Míchel rotated his squad in this match against the ‘Reds’ and will miss defenders Ladislav Krejcí due to suspension and Bojan Miovski, Yangel Herrera and Viktor Tsygankov due to injuries.
OSASUNA IS IN EUROPE
Saturday’s matches kick off at the RCDE Stadium at 14:00 CET, where RCD Espanyol will look to strengthen their home advantage against a CA Osasuna side hoping to return to winning ways and secure a place in Europe.
The Catalan side fell into the relegation zone after another away defeat and will now look to show their strength in front of their fans to end the day out of the danger zone. The ‘pericos’ currently have 13 points, just two from safety, but have managed to accumulate 12 points at home thanks to four victories, which improves their overall total and shows better offensive efficiency.
Manolo González’s team has just suffered a defeat against Getafe (1-0) and is approaching a crucial end of the year with a postponed match against Valencia at home and a visit to UD Las Palmas, requiring all three points to continue to give hope to their coach. The Espanyol coach will be without two starters, Jofre Carreras and Omar El Hilali, due to suspensions.
Meanwhile, direct rivals like Osasuna, currently seventh with 24 points, are better positioned and need a victory that has recently eluded them to temporarily claim a place in European competition.
The ‘rojillos’ are tied on points with Real Sociedad in sixth place and are two points behind Villarreal CF in fifth, meaning a win could move them ahead of both rivals. However, they have not tasted victory in LaLiga EA Sports since November 2 (1-0 against Valladolid), recording three draws and one defeat in their last four matches, only winning away to San Sebastián at the outside. Vicente Moreno, the Osasuna coach, will count on the good form of Ante Budimir while being deprived of the infirmary of Bryan Zaragoza and the suspended Jon Moncayola.
NAVAS BIDS GOODBYE TO PIZJUÁN
Finally, at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán Stadium in Seville (18:30 CET), a special match will take place as it will mark the last appearance of Sevilla legend Jesús Navas in front of his fans, facing a Celta team looking to finish 2024 close European places.
The Galician team has collected 21 points and is looking for three more to move away as much as possible from a battle for maintenance, which is more threatening for Sevilla FC, which only leads the Celestes by two points and has a six-point cushion on the danger zone.
The match will be full of emotion due to the farewell of Jesús Navas, who is playing his last matches as a professional, with his last match scheduled for next week at the Santiago Bernabéu. The Sevillian team, in the throes of an away defeat against Atlético Madrid, will want to approach the match with as little urgency as possible while still needing to be solid in front of their fans against a rival who is less formidable outside of Vigo.
Celta breathed a sigh of relief after their recent home victory against Mallorca (2-0) and are now looking to unlock their potential away from Balaídos to aim for more ambitious goals than simply ensuring survival as quickly as possible.
The Vigo side have suffered five defeats in their seven away league matches this season, with their only victory coming over two months ago against UD Las Palmas. To change this trend, they need to improve their defense after conceding 18 goals and only keeping a clean sheet during their visit to Gran Canaria.
Sevilla coach Xavi García Pimienta confirmed that Navas will have the opportunity to play in front of his fans for the last time, although he did not specify whether he would start as the team added to their list of injured with midfielder Djibril Sow. Norwegian goalkeeper Örjan Nyland could return to the starting XI, while Celta coach Claudio Giráldez could reinstate Iago Aspas in the XI.
— SATURDAY SCHEDULE FOR DAY 17 OF LALIGA EA SPORTS.
Espanyol – Osasuna. Cordero Vega (Cántabro) 2:00 p.m.
Mallorca – Girona. Hernández Maeso (C.Extremeño) 16:15.
Seville – Celta. Gil Manzano (C.Extremeño) 18:30.
Rayo Vallecano – Real Madrid. Martínez Munuera (C.Valenciano) 21:00.
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