The Spanish La Liga has returned to action and the games are back in a flurry. On Thursday, June 18, 2020, Alaves looks to move farther from the relegation zone as they take on Champions League-seeking Real Sociedad at the Estadio de Mendizorroza. The game will be aired live via beIN Sports at 1:30 pm EST.
Alaves is trying to increase its seven-point edge over Mallorca in the relegation battle. With still enough matches to play, Alaves still needs the points to stay in the La Liga for another season. Real Sociedad is trying to hold on to the last Champions League spot with Getafe and Atletico Madrid breathing heavily behind their back.
Alaves currently sit on 15th place in the Spanish La Liga standings with a record of 8 wins, 8 draws, and 12 losses for a total of 32 points. Right now, they are seven points clear of relegation but with still 10 games left to play in the 2019-20 Spanish La Liga season, they still need to pick up points to keep their top-flight spot.
In their first match since the restart of the season, Alaves had a disappointing 0-2 defeat on the road against cellar-dwellers Espanyol. Alaves saw Fernando Pacheco get sent off in the 19th minute and it was downhill from there. Bernardo put the home team on board in the first half while Wu Lei delivered the insurance goal early in the second half of the action. Alaves only has one victory in their last four matches and are winless in their last three.
Lucas Perez leads the team with a total of 11 goals scored on the season. Joselu has found the back of the net nine times while Aleix Vidal has two scores on the year. Perez is also the team leader in assists with five while Vidal and Joselu have combined for six assists on the current term for Alaves.
Alaves is ranked 12th in the league in defense at 39 goals allowed. They are 14th in goal scoring with a total of 29 strikes this season. Alaves are tied for 14th overall with a total of 17 assists per game. Their goal difference of -10 is ranked 15th in the Spanish top flight this season.
Real Sociedad is currently in 4th place, holding the final Champions League spot. They have earned a total of 47 points on 14 wins, 5 losses, and 9 draws. Real Sociedad is not yet out of the woods as Getafe and Atletico Madrid are just a solitary point behind them in the Spanish table while 7th place Valencia is just four points back with still double-digit games left to play.
Like Alaves, Real Sociedad returned from the three-month break with a disappointing result as they were held to a 1-1 draw at home by Osasuna. Osasuna got on board quickly as Adrian scored on a penalty in the 29th minute to give the visitors the early lead. However, Mikel Oyarzabal put the hosts even in the 61st minute.
Oyarzabal and Willian Jose lead Real Sociedad with nine goals scored each. Alexander Isak has found the back of the net seven times this year. Portu leads the team with eight assists while also scoring seven goals while Oyarzabal has six assists as well. Martin Odegaard has also contributed four goals and five assists for Sociedad.
Real Sociedad is the third-most prolific team in La Liga with a total of 46 goals scored. They are tied for 8th in goals conceded with a total of 34 allowed this term. Sociedad is also the third-best passing team with a total of 31 assists this season and their goal difference of +12 is also ranked third in the league.
These teams have played each other in a total of 45 times. Real Sociedad hold the upper hand in their all-time head to head meetings with a record of 23-8-14. Sociedad also won their reverse fixture 3-0 last September 2019.
Alaves is the 12th best home team in the Spanish League with 23 points on a 6-5-3 record. On the other hand, Real Sociedad is the fifth-best road club in the La Liga with 20 points on a 6-2-6 away from home record. Sociedad has lost just twice in their last 10 games and is unbeaten in four out of their last five matches.
I like Real Sociedad’s form heading to this match and without an audience cheering the home team, there is no home-field advantage.
Real Sociedad owns the head to head edge over Alaves and they have won four out of their last five meetings. Alaves is just 3-4-3 in their last 10 matches played while Real Sociedad is 5-1-4 over that period. Sociedad has lost just twice in their last 10 matches and once in their last five.
PREDICTION: REAL SOCIEDAD
CD Alaves has scored a total of 11 goals in their last 11 matches or an average of 1 goal per game. They have scored more than one goal just twice in their last 10 assignments. On the other hand, Real Sociedad has found the back of the net 18 times in their last 11 outings or a 1.64 goals per 90 minutes average. Sociedad has scored two or more goals in half of their last six matches. I like both teams to score in this contest.
PREDICTION: YES – BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE (+100)
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