Villarreal vs Real Madrid 02/09/19

2 September 2019

Villarreal and Real Madrid go head-to-head at the Estadio de la Ceramica, with the hosts looking to put an end to Real’s three-game unbeaten LL run in H2Hs (W1, D2). Interestingly, the last two H2H meetings between these two sides here have ended with the same 2-2 scoreline, with Real Madrid scoring two goals in the first half on both occasions only to see their halftime lead vanish in the second 45 minutes.

Although the hosts failed to secure a win in the opening two rounds of LL fixtures (D1, L1), they’ve managed to provide their fans with entertainment. Both of Villarreal’s league games this term have produced over 2.5 goals and seen both teams score. Also, both have seen the Yellow Submarine breaking the deadlock in the first half and then lose that advantage later on by conceding multiple goals in the second period. Still, they are unbeaten in their last six LL home outings (W3, D3), with five of those matches featuring over 2.5 goals and witnessing goals on both ends.

Meanwhile, the visitors started the new LL season off on the right foot, securing a 3-1 away win over Celta Vigo before being held to a shock 1-1 home draw by Real Valladolid. Lapses of concentration in the final ten minutes of the game has caused Los Merengues concede both of those goals beyond the 85^th minute. Also, success against Celta was Real’s only LL away win in their last six LL trips (W1, D2, L3), with all five of those failures seeing Los Blancos score one goal or less. Another major problem for Zinedine Zidane is that his players have struggled to keep a clean sheet in 15 of 16 away games in all competitions since the turn of the year, allowing over 1.5 match goals five times though.