Having crashed out of the Copa del Rey, Villarreal can fully focus on their league campaign and they are aware a victory over Celta Vigo would cement their place in the top 6. The Sky Blues climbed to eighth despite missing a chance to record third straight win, but they clearly arrive at El Madrigal in excellent spirits.

Copa del Rey run comes to an end

Even much bigger sides tend to have problems competing in three major competitions, but Villarreal have done brilliantly so far this season, even if their Copa del Rey campaign ended with a semi-final defeat to Barcelona. Meanwhile, the Yellow Submarine will be vying league rivals and current holders Sevilla for a place in the Europa League quarter-finals. Villarreal have impressed in the La Liga as well, as they climbed to sixth in the overall standings, and they should have no problems securing another European qualification. A top 4 finish may prove too distant, although everything could change if Valencia lose at Vicente Calderon this weekend. One of team’s biggest qualities this season is the fact their performances remain very good regardless of the starting line-up Marcelino Garcia Toral sends on the pitch and it was largely second-string side that held mighty Real Madrid to a 1-1 draw at the Bernabeu. The boss is again expected to make changes to the team that was beaten by Barcelona in midweek, but Villarreal can, nonetheless, be trusted to produce another impressive display at home, having won last seven league matches at El Madrigal.

January recruit Eric Bailly is set for a two-week spell on the sidelines, but Tomas Pina is available despite seeing red against Barcelona.

Celta back in business

Celta Vigo are doing even better than last term, when they ended the league campaign in ninth place, thanks to a strong finish to the season, although the team did experience some problems along the way. Following the outstanding start under new boss Eduardo Berizzo, the Sky Blues suffered a major dip in form, and lost eight of ten games in the space of two and a half months. And just as they were in danger of slipping into the danger zone, Celta finally managed to rediscover their form, with 11 points from last 5 seeing them climb to eighth. The Sky Blues were on the verge of third straight win as they had the lead against Elche at the weekend, but they were unfortunate to concede a late equalizer from a very soft penalty. The team can, nonetheless, be proud of their latest performances and certainly go into the Villarreal clash in great spirits. Celta could find it hard to end the opposition’s seven-match winning run at home, but they have enough attacking potential to turn this game into a high-scoring affair.

Key midfielder Michael Krohn-Dehli is expected to play despite suffering a back injury, but Carles Planas and Borja Oubina are set to miss out.

Verdict

In spite of the Copa del Rey loss to Barcelona, Villarreal are showing no signs of slowing down and I fully expect them to extend the winning run at home to eight straight matches. However, they will not find it easy against in-form Celta Vigo, who can be trusted to score at least once at El Madrigal.

Top pick: Home win   1.95 (19/20) @ 888sport

Alternative pick 1: Over 2.5 goals   2.00 (1/1) @ Betfred

Alternative pick 2: Both teams to score   1.85 (17/20) @ Ladbrokes