Real Madrid v Villarreal Prediction
Home Team Total Goals Over/Under - Over (2.5)
Real Madrid host Villarreal at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday night and Los Blancos must win to keep pace with Barcelona in the La Liga title race.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side are heavy sports betting outsiders to lift the trophy, with Real trailing Barca by 12 points with 11 league games left to play.
However, buoyed by a 4-0 victory over Barcelona in the Copa Del Rey earlier this week, we could see Real finish the season strongly and you can never say never…
The likes of Karim Benzema and Vinicius Junior have been in scintillating form in recent times and Villarreal could find themselves up against it on Saturday evening.
The visitors are currently sixth in the La Liga table but inconsistency has plagued their season and they are hardly a reliable betting proposition in this encounter.
Having said that, Villarreal did run out 2-0 winners over Real Sociedad in their most recent La Liga contest and they cannot be dismissed completely.
Confidence is high at the Bernabeu though and the 4-0 win over Barcelona could well act as the catalyst for Real Madrid to finish the 2022/23 season with silverware.
While La Liga is most unlikely on their possible trophy list, Real can at least put some more pressure on Barcelona ahead of their next match on Monday night.
This isn’t a straightforward affair but Real Madrid should have too much firepower for their opponents. I’m backing Real to score three or more goals in this clash.
Prediction: Real Madrid 3-1 Villarreal
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Villarreal Club History
Far from the biggest club in La Liga betting, Villarreal have made a habit of punching above their weight to go toe-to-toe with some of the giants of Spanish football.
Founded in 1923, the club existed in the lower reaches of the Spanish pyramid for the majority of its history, but has become a regular alongside the historic powerhouses of La Liga through the beginning of the 21st century despite a season in the Segunda in 2012-13.
Following the Spanish Civil War, Villarreal’s identity and imaging changed multiple times. The club adopted its current crest in the mid-1960s, just a few years before their Tercera Division title.
Existing in Segunda A during the first few years of the 1990s, they enjoyed a breakthrough in 1998 when they secured a playoff spot. The 1998-99 campaign was their first ever in La Liga, which unfortunately ended in relegation.
Their stay in the second tier was short-lived, however, as they bounced back at the first time of asking.
By the middle of the 2000s, Villarreal had a couple of entries and wins in the Intertoto Cup, ultimately earning their first ever UEFA Cup appearance, a journey which ended at the semi-final stage.
In the second half of the noughties, Villarreal went from strength-to-strength.
The highlights were a last four effort in the Champions League and finishing as La Liga runners-up. Diego Forlan starred up front for a short period after a disappointing spell at Manchester United.
Villarreal suffered their most recent relegation in 2012, leading to a lot of important players leaving.
Again, it was just one campaign in the Segunda, and they have since re-established themselves as one of Spain’s elite clubs, winning their first European silverware in 2021 and reaching the Champions League semi-final in the following campaign.
Midfielder Manuel Trigueros is the club’s all-time appearance leader. Gerard Moreno tops the goal scoring charts as the only player in Villarreal history with more than 100 goals.
Villarreal Honours List
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Tercera Division – 1968-69
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Europa League – 2020-21
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Intertoto Cup – 2003, 2004
Villarreal Competitions This Season
Initially under Unai Emery and then Quique Setien, Villarreal had to cope with a very congested schedule during the first half of the season.
Such challenges are set to continue into 2023, with the club competing in La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the Europa Conference League.
"Fancy a game tonight with my mates?"
— Villarreal CF English (@VillarrealCFen) January 7, 2023
"Are they any good?"
"Don't worry about their level, you'll be fine."
The mates: pic.twitter.com/1AoPbaRcJf
Villarreal has cruised through the first three rounds of the Copa del Rey to secure a place in the Round of 32. In La Liga, their season started with a 3-0 win over Valladolid, followed by an away win against Atletico Madrid.
It has been a good start to the season from a continental perspective.
Initially seeing off Hadjuk Split in the playoff round, Villarreal booked their place in the group stage of the Conference League and finished top of the section including Austria Wien, Lech Poznan and Hapoel Beer Sheva.
*Credit for all of the photos in this article belongs to AP Photo*
