Sevilla will be bidding to avoid a fifth straight defeat in La Liga when they continue their campaign with a clash against Basque outfit Alaves at Estadio Ramon on Sunday night.
Los Nervionenses are 14th in the La Liga table, seven points ahead of the relegation zone, while Alaves sit 17th, only one point above 18th-placed Las Palmas in the battle to remain in Spain's top flight.
Match preview
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Sevilla sacked Garcia Pimienta as head coach last weekend, with the decision being made following the 1-0 defeat at Valencia, which proved to be a fourth straight loss for the team in the top flight of Spanish football.
Joaquin Caparros has been re-appointed as head coach for the remainder of the season, and it is incredibly the fourth time that the Spaniard has been in charge of Sevilla, with his most recent spell coming back in 2019.
The 69-year-old will lead the team in their final seven league fixtures, and there will certainly be some concern if results do not improve, as just seven points separate them from 18th-placed Las Palmas.
Sevilla finished 14th last season, which proved to be their worst campaign in the top flight since being relegated back in 2000, but it could get even worse this term, as they are only two points ahead of 16th-placed Girona.
Los Nervionenses have been underwhelming on home soil in La Liga this season, only picking up 19 points from 15 matches, while Alaves have 14 points to show from their 16 away league fixtures this term.
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Alaves will not be sympathetic to Sevilla's issues, though, as the Basque outfit have problems of their own, battling to remain in Spain's top flight for the 2025-26 campaign.
The Blue and Whites enjoyed an excellent 2023-24, finishing up in 10th position, but it has been a struggle this term, with 30 points from 31 matches leaving them down in 17th, just one point ahead of 18th-placed Las Palmas.
Alaves will enter this match off the back of a 1-0 home defeat to Real Madrid, but they did manage to record a 1-0 victory over Girona in their last match away from their own supporters at the start of the month.
Eduardo Coudet's side are actually unbeaten in their last four away league games, scoring seven times in the process, so they will enter this weekend's clash against Sevilla with a degree of confidence.
Alaves are bidding to do a La Liga double over Sevilla, having recorded a 2-1 victory in the reverse game earlier this season, while they are actually unbeaten in their last five top-flight fixtures against Los Nervionenses.
Team News
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Sevilla will be without the services of Kike Salas through suspension, while Tanguy Nianzou, Ruben Vargas and Akor Adams are all fitness doubts for the home side ahead of this contest.
Interim head coach Caparros is expected to resist the temptation to shuffle his pack, but there will be a change at left-back, with Adria Pedrosa in line to replace the suspended Salas.
Juanlu Sanchez is also likely to earn a recall after starting on the bench against Valencia, with the Spaniard potentially taking the place of Peque Fernandez down the right.
As for Alaves, Santiago Mourino and Manu Sanchez will both serve suspensions, with the former picking up a milestone yellow card against Real Madrid, while the latter was sent off in the same match.
However, Antonio Rivera, Jon Guridi and Tomas Conechny will all be back after serving bans of their own last time out.
Abdel Abqar was forced off against Real Madrid in the 76th minute, but there is hope that he will be available for selection on Sunday, while Ander Guevara could be asked to play as a full-back due to the team's defensive issues.
Sevilla possible starting lineup:
Nyland; Carmona, Bade, Gudelj, Pedrosa; Sow, Agoume; Juanlu, Lokonga, Lukebakio; Romero
Alaves possible starting lineup:
Sivera; Tenaglia, Abqar, Diarra, Guevara; Jordan, Blanco; Vicente, Alena, Martin; Kike Garcia
We say: Sevilla 1-1 Alaves
Alaves have won their last two league games against Sevilla, and it is difficult to back the hosts with any real confidence at the moment due to their recent problems. As a result, we have had to settle on a low-scoring draw at Estadio Ramon.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
