Alaves are 19th in the La Liga table with eight matches left to play and three points between the relegation zone and safety.
On Sunday, Alaves will welcome Huesca to the Mendizorrotza Stadium for a relegation six-pointer. Deportivo Alaves will be overseen by former Villarreal coach Javier Calleja for the second straight week after he took over on April 5.
¡Trabajo, trabajo y trabajo! 👊🏻🔵🔴Nueva sesión para preparar el #AlavésHuesca.#AquíNoSeRebla pic.twitter.com/P82hRYXTsM— SD Huesca (@SDHuesca) April 14, 2021
¡Trabajo, trabajo y trabajo! 👊🏻🔵🔴Nueva sesión para preparar el #AlavésHuesca.#AquíNoSeRebla pic.twitter.com/P82hRYXTsM
Calleja led Alaves to a nil-nil draw with Athletic Bilbao last weekend to inspire hope of survival. Huesca are 16th in the standings and three points above Alaves in the table. Like Alaves, Huesca have chopped and changed managers this season.
On January 12, they hired Pacheta and results have been better ever since. Huesca are on a three-game unbeaten run in La Liga and have won back-to-back games.
Huesca won the reverse fixture against Alaves 1-0. Javi Ontiveros’ 66th-minute goal was enough to give Huesca the victory.
On-loan Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Rafa Mir is in brilliant form for SD Huesca. He has scored four goals in the team’s last two games. He bagged two goals in each game to lead Huesca to wins over Levante and Elche. He could get on the scoresheet again this weekend.
Reports on Thursday claim that Barcelona want to sign Mir. The Wolves flop could ultimately land the club a large transfer fee.
Calleja has three injuries at Alaves going into the game. Facundo Pellistri is a doubt due to a hamstring injury. Abdel Abqar could return from a foot issue while Rodrigo Ely is in line to make the team. Florian Lejeune is ruled out due to suspension.
Pacheta is likely to be without defender Pablo Maffeo. The defender has a shoulder injury. Forward Ontiveros, who scored earlier this season against Alaves, is a doubt. Gaston Silva and Antonio Valera are both doubts as well due to fitness issues.
With eight games left to play for both Spanish clubs, the season is coming down to its final 24 points. Three massive points are up for grabs at the Mendizorrotza Stadium.
Both teams should go for the win on Sunday but ultimately, the game could end in a draw. Alaves and Huesca should both score goals and over 2.5 goals could be tallied by the sides in a stalemate.
Seven of the last 10 games in all competitions between the clubs ended with over 2.5 goals scored. Six of those 10 games also ended with both teams scoring goals.