- Villarreal CF are unbeaten in their last 3 home games (W2, D1).
- Espanyol have won 1, drawn 1 and lost 3 of their last 5 in all competitions.
- Roberto Fernandez is Espanyol's main threat, scoring 6 goals in 7 LaLiga 2026/2027 games (3 in last 4).
Yellow Submarines are still sub-par
Villarreal CF are 12th in the LaLiga 2026/2027 table after taking nine points from their first nine games, a solid enough position from which to move up the table in the weeks ahead.
Iñigo Pérez's men enter this Friday's clash at Estadio de la Ceramica after a mixed week that saw them beat Napoli 3-1 at home in the UEFA Champions League, draw 0-0 with Elche in their most recent LaLiga fixture and lose 4-3 at Liverpool on Tuesday. Villarreal's 4-3-3 system, which is based around territorial dominance, structured possession and high pressing, should be able to get to grips with Espanyol on Friday.
El Submarino Amarillo have won all five of the last five head-to-head clashes with Espanyol, including a 4-1 home win over Espanyol in this fixture 8 months ago in the last campaign of LaLiga 2025/2026. Espanyol have failed to win on their last three trips to the Ceramica, so we wouldn't want to be on their side to take anything from this game.
Espanyol are a solid side but short of goals
Pericos are 16th in the table, eight points from nine games, so they come into this game a step behind Villarreal.
They travel to the Estadio de la Ceramica after a 1-1 draw away at Malaga and 0-1 home defeat to Atletico Madrid in their two most recent games, results that suggest they are a little short of sharpness in the attacking third.
Manolo González's side have been very solid since he took charge in March 2024, sitting deep and compact in a 5-3-2 or 5-2-3 formation and building up play in a low-risk fashion before pressing high after turnovers. But Villarreal's higher tempo pressing and territorial superiority should cause them to adapt their tactics for this clash.
Villarreal the obvious choice
The bookmakers have Villarreal as the clear favourite here at 27/50, with Espanyol 47/10 and the draw at 31/10. The hosts should win this clash and get the three points, and Espanyol aren't a bad team.
Our preferred play in this match is on Both Teams To Score - No at 6/5, which looks good in a game where Villarreal are likely to control the territory while Espanyol will struggle to get through their solid backline.
Georges Mikautadze has bagged three goals in Villarreal's last five and looks a livewire in the final third, while Javi Hernandez has been the creator-in-chief for Espanyol with four assists in seven LaLiga 2026/2027 games.
