Before the Round – Trends on Spain LaLiga (04-05/03)

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Real Madrid pulled Barcelona back to within seven points last weekend. While Barcelona and Madrid are battling for the La Liga championship, Real Betis are fighting Atletico Madrid for the final Champions League qualification place.

Getafe CF - Girona FC

Girona posted a 3-1 win over Getafe earlier this season in La Liga. Three of the last six head-to-head matches between Getafe and Girona ended as draws.

Girona are 11th and having a strong first season back in La Liga. Los Rojiblancos are on a two-match winning streak with a 3-2 win over Athletic Bilbao and a 6-2 victory over Almeria.

Getafe are 19th in the division and headed for relegation. Los Azulones failed to win five of their last six La Liga matches. Getafe picked up just 13 points from their 12 home matches this season.

• Getafe CF have won only 3 of their last 16 home La Liga matches.
• Girona FC haven't lost in 6 of their last 7 encounters with Getafe CF in all competitions.
• Getafe CF have lost just 2 of their last 6 home La Liga games.
• Girona FC are conceding an average of 1.52 goals in La Liga matches.
• Prediction: Girona FC

UD Almeria – Villarreal

Villarreal are unbeaten in six straight games against Almeria in all competitions. Almeria upset first-place Barcelona a week ago by a 1-0 score at home. Can Almeria defeat another top-half-of-the-table team?

Almeria are 15th in the standings. Just two of their last five games in the league ended as wins. Twenty-two of Almeria’s 25 points this season have come at home.

Villarreal are seventh in the table and coming off a 2-1 win over Getafe. The win ended a four-match losing streak in La Liga. The Yellow Submarine lost their last two away matches.

• UD Almería are conceding an average of 1.75 goals in their all competitions games.
• Villarreal CF are on a poor run of just 1 wins in 10 away matches (La Liga).
• UD Almería haven't suffered any defeats in 7 of their 8 most recent home meetings with Villarreal CF in all competitions.
• Villarreal CF have lost just 2 of their last 6 away games (all competitions).
• Prediction: Over 2.5 goals

RCD Mallorca - Elche CF

Five of the last six head-to-head matches between Mallorca and Elche finished as draws. The teams played out a 1-1 draw earlier this season, as both teams had a player sent off.

Mallorca are midtable and having a strong season in the league. The Islanders are just four points off the top six. Nine points were taken from Mallorca’s last six matches, as they scored seven goals and conceded eight.

Elche are bottom of the table and on a three-game losing streak in the league. The Green Stripe Ones took just nine points from their opening 23 matches.

• Real Mallorca have won their last 5 home La Liga games in a row.
• In their last 28 away games in La Liga, Elche CF have a poor record of just 3 wins.
• Real Mallorca have defeated Elche CF in just 1 of their last 7 meetings in all competitions.
• On average, Elche CF have conceded 2.09 goals in their last matches in La Liga.
• Prediction: Real Mallorca

Real Valladolid – Espanyol

Real Valladolid posted a record of 3W-1D-2L against Espanyol in the teams’ last six matches. Valladolid go into the weekend one point above the bottom three. Espanyol are now up to 12th in the league standings.

Espanyol are on a two-game winning streak in La Liga. The Parakeets are four points above the relegation zone thanks to their sudden discovery of winning form. Espanyol took 10 points from their last six games.

Valladolid took seven points from the last 18 points on offer. The Purple are on a two-game losing streak in La Liga. No team has scored fewer La Liga goals than Valladolid’s 16.

• No defeats at half time can be found in Real Valladolid's 18 most recent home games in all competitions.
• RCD Espanyol have achieved just 4 wins in their 30 most recent away games in La Liga.
• In Real Valladolid's last 4 home all competitions games have been scored under 2.5 goals.
• RCD Espanyol have a good record of 5 undefeated games of their last 6 away encounters in La Liga.
• Prediction: Under 2.5 goals