Midweek is the Copa del Rey time for Sevilla and Celta Vigo who lock horns at Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan on Thursday night in the semi-finals of the competition.

Emery proving a point

Sevilla manager came under a lot of pressure at the opening stages of the competition, but the experienced manager managed to steady the ship and lead his team towards some pretty noticeable results. Copa del Rey participation is taken quite seriously by Sevilla, who will be looking for the way to lift the title and win some silverware in what has so far been an erratic season. Rojiblancos are going through an impressive patch of form that has seen them hit the fifth place in the La Liga standings. With one loss in their last ten games, Unay Emeri’s troops have demonstrated their quality and will push hard until the end to reach the UEFA Champions League slot. Sevilla are eight points away from the desired position, but there are a lot of games to be played until the end of the season and nothing is settled just yet. In attempts to further strengthen their squad, Rojiblancos have brought back their former player Federico Fazio, who has been loaned from Tottenham. The central defender struggled to find his ground at White Hart Lane and is looking forward the new beginning.

Vicente Iborra is suspended for the Thursday’s game, while Beto, Kakuta, Marco Andreolli and Diego Figueiras are all struggling with injuries.

No for Nolito

Celta Vigo star performer stayed in and that is the best news that Celta fans could hear at the moment. The Spanish international has been in sublime form this term and his former club Barcelona were poised to make a move in January. However, the player himself expressed his wish to stay at Vigo and is looking towards the remainder of the season with his club. Celta travel to Seville feeling positive after their impressive Copa del Rey triumph against Atletico Madrid 3-2 at Vicente Calderon. O Celticos will be keen on making another step towards the finals as Copa Del Rey success would come as a positive change compared to their current La Liga situation. Eduardo Berizzo’s men were dealt back-to-back La Liga defeats and their trip to Sevilla is a welcoming chance to turn the fortunes around and get back to winning ways. Latest disappointment at Las Palmas (2-1) could be quickly forgotten with a positive result at Sevilla, but Berizzo’s men are in for a tough challenge.

Sevilla brought in Marcelo Diaz from Hamburg in January and he could be involved against Sevilla if he gets passed fit for the occasion. Key man Nolito is still down with his December knock, while Andreu Fontas is also on the injury list.

Verdict

Games between these two rivals haven’t exactly been the most exciting of events. Low on goals, four of their last five meetings ended with under 2.5 goals. I predict another low-scoring affair with home team holding a slight edge against Celta without Nolito.

Top pick: Under 2.5 goals    1.92 (11/12) @888sport

Alternative pick 1: Home win    2.5 (6/4) @Sportingbet

Alternative pick 2: Sevilla to win to nil    4.5 (7/2) @Ladbrokes