Villarreal will be bidding to bounce back from four straight La Liga defeats when they continue their domestic campaign at home to lowly Getafe on Monday night.
The Yellow Submarine have dropped into ninth position in the table due to their recent struggles, while Getafe occupy 16th, level on points with 18th-placed Cadiz on the same number of matches (22).
Match preview
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Villarreal have not been victorious in Spain’s top flight since overcoming Girona on January 22, losing each of their last four against Rayo Vallecano, Elche, Barcelona and Mallorca.
Quique Setien’s side conceded four in their defeat to Mallorca last weekend, and the disappointing run of form has seen them drop into ninth position in the table, boasting just 31 points from their 22 matches.
The Yellow Submarine are currently 10 points behind fourth-placed Atletico Madrid, but they are just three from Rayo Vallecano in sixth, so a European finish is still entirely possible despite their recent problems.
Villarreal have picked up 19 points from their 10 home league games this term, and their form in front of their own fans is likely to be crucial when it comes to a possible top-six position.
El Submarino Amarillo, who are unbeaten against Getafe in the league since January 2019, are still in the Europa Conference League, meanwhile, with the team preparing to take on Anderlecht in the round of 16.
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Getafe’s recent record against Villarreal will not fill them with much confidence, having lost six of their last seven top-flight matches against their opponents on Monday night.
The points were shared in a goalless draw earlier this season, though, and the visitors can certainly draw confidence from Villarreal’s problems over the last month.
Getafe will bring a three-game unbeaten run into this match, having drawn with Atletico and Rayo Vallecano, and beaten Valencia, in their last three games in Spain’s top flight.
Last time out, Borja Mayoral netted the only goal of the contest against Valencia at Coliseum Alfonso Perez, and the result moved them onto 22 points in the table, level with 18th-placed Cadiz.
The Deep Blue Ones are undoubtedly involved in a relegation battle at this stage of the campaign, but head coach Quique Sanchez Flores will still be confident that he has enough quality in the squad to pull clear of the drop zone over the next few weeks.
Team News
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Villarreal will be without the services of Manu Trigueros following his red card against Mallorca last time out, while Francis Coquelin and Nicolas Jackson are on the sidelines through injury.
Gerard Moreno and Giovani Lo Celso are also fitness doubts for the home side, but Alberto Moreno will be back in the squad after returning from a suspension.
Head coach Setien is expected to introduce Alex Baena into his starting XI for this match, but there are not expected to be wholesale changes despite the disappointment of the result last time out.
As for Getafe, Carles Alena will be back in the squad after serving a suspension against Valencia, so the visitors could have a full-strength squad for this contest.
Alena is expected to return to the starting side, with Gonzalo Villar potentially dropping out, but it might otherwise be the same side that took to the field for the first whistle against Los Che.
Munir El Haddadi should therefore continue in a wide position, with Enes Unal and Mayoral playing as the front two for Flores’s side on Monday night.
Villarreal possible starting lineup:
Reina; Foyth, Albiol, P Torres, A Moreno; Capoue, Parejo, Baena; Pino, Morales, Chukwueze
Getafe possible starting lineup:
Soria; Dakonam, Duarte, Alderete, Alvarez; Portu, Alena, Arambarri, El Haddadi; Unal, Mayoral