The Yellow Submarine will enter the contest off the back of a 1-0 defeat at Elche, while Mallorca suffered a 2-0 loss to basement side Levante in their last league game on January 8.

Match preview

Villarreal coach Unai Emery during the match on January 9, 2022 © Reuters

Villarreal have won seven, drawn eight and lost six of their 21 La Liga matches this season to collect 29 points, which has left them in eighth spot in the table, four points behind fourth-placed Atletico Madrid.

The Yellow Submarine won four straight league matches between December 12 and January 3 to rise up the division, but they have only picked up one point from their last two games, drawing with Atletico on January 9 before suffering a 1-0 loss to Elche last weekend.

Unai Emery's side were knocked out of the Copa del Rey at the start of the month but are still competing on two fronts this season, having advanced to the knockout round of the Champions League.

Villarreal cannot afford to take their eye off the ball in the league, though, as they bid to stay in touch with the European positions, with fourth-placed Atletico very much in touching distance.

Emery's team have also impressed in front of their own supporters this season, collecting 21 points from their 11 matches, recording six victories in the process.

Mallorca coach Luis Garcia on January 2, 2022 © Reuters

Mallorca, meanwhile, suffered a 2-0 defeat to Levante in their last league game on January 8, and a disappointing run of form in La Liga has seen them collect just one point from their last four matches.

Without a victory since beating Atletico at the start of December, the Pirates have dropped to 16th position in the table, just three points outside of the relegation zone.

Luis Garcia's side, who finished second in the Segunda Division last season, are bidding to make it successive campaigns at this level of football for the first time since 2013.

Mallorca, who beat Espanyol 2-1 in the Copa del Rey at the weekend, have actually only lost one of their last four La Liga matches against Villarreal, recording two wins in the process, while the points were shared in a 1-1 draw when they locked horns earlier this season.

Garcia's team have not travelled particularly well this term, though, picking up just eight points from their 10 away La Liga matches, and they will be wary of a backlash from Villarreal this weekend.

Villarreal La Liga form:

Villarreal form (all competitions):

Mallorca La Liga form:

Mallorca form (all competitions):

Team News

Villarreal's Pau Torres celebrates scoring their first goal with teammates on January 9, 2022 © Reuters

Villarreal will be without the services of Juan Foyth, Paco Alcacer, Ruben Pena and Francis Coquelin for this weekend's contest through injury.

Foyth's absence will open the door for Mario Gaspar to feature at right-back, but head coach Emery could otherwise select the same XI that started the defeat to Elche.

Alberto Moreno should keep his spot in a wide midfield area, while a 4-4-2 formation is again expected to include Gerard Moreno and Yeremi Pino in the attacking spots.

As for Mallorca, Dominik Greif remains a doubt following a positive COVID-19 test, while Antonio Raillo could again miss out due to an ankle problem.

Dani Rodriguez is available after serving a suspension against Levante, with the midfielder back in the starting XI against Espanyol in the Copa del Rey.

There will be changes from the side that started the cup fixture, with Antonio Sanchez and Rodrigo Battaglia among those in line to return, but Abdon Prats could retain his spot in the final third of the field.

Villarreal possible starting lineup:
Rulli; Gaspar, Albiol, Torres, Estupinan; M Gomez, Capoue, Parejo, A Moreno; G Moreno, Pino

Mallorca possible starting lineup:
Roman; Maffeo, Russo, Sedlar, Costa; Battaglia, Ruiz de Galarreta; D Rodriguez, Kubo, Sanchez; Prats

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We say: Villarreal 1-0 Mallorca

Villarreal will be desperate to bounce back from their disappointing loss at Elche last time out, and we are expecting the Yellow Submarine to triumph here. Mallorca have enjoyed recent success in the Copa del Rey but have lost their last three in the league, and we are backing a 1-0 victory for the hosts in this match.

Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a home win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.

Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Villarreal win with a probability of 61.34%. A draw had a probability of 21.5% and a win for Mallorca had a probability of 17.12%.

The most likely scoreline for a Villarreal win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.24%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (10.87%) and 2-1 (9.91%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (10.23%), while for a Mallorca win it was 0-1 (5.29%). The actual scoreline of 3-0 was predicted with a 7% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Villarreal would win this match.