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Unionistas will host Villarreal at Reina Sofia on Sunday in another round of the 2023-24 Copa del Rey campaign.
The home side kicked off their cup campaign with a 2-0 win over Gernika, with Mario Losada and Alfred Planas scoring a quickfire second-half double to seal the win. They then beat Segunda Division side Sporting Gijon 2-0 in the next round, with Losada and Sergio Camus getting on the scoresheet early in either half to clinch a hard-fought victory.
Villarreal, meanwhile, thrashed amateur outfit Chiclana 5-0 in the opening round of the Copa del Rey back in November last year, with three different players getting on the scoresheet including Manu Trigueros who scored a hat-trick.
They then beat Zamora 2-1 in the next round and had looked set to be headed toward a shock and early exit from the tournament before Jose Luis Morales scored a late leveler to send the game to extra time and then scored the winner early in the first half of added time.
El Submarino Amarillo faced Cartagena at this stage of the competition last season, picking up a 5-1 victory and will be hopeful of replicating similar heights this weekend.
Unionistas vs Villarreal Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- Sunday's game will mark the first-ever meeting between Unionistas and Villarreal.
- The hosts' last matchup against top-flight opposition came back in January 2020 when they faced Real Madrid in a cup clash which they lost 3-1.
- The visitors are without a clean sheet in their last five games across all competitions.
- Only one of Unionistas' six league defeats this season has come on home turf.
- Villarreal have conceded 38 goals in La Liga this season. Only Granada (40) and Almeria (43) have conceded more.
Unionistas vs Villarreal Prediction
Unionistas' latest result ended a run of back-to-back winless outings and they will be looking to build on that this weekend. They have lost just once on home turf all season and will be looking to pull off a major upset on Sunday.
Villarreal have lost two of their last three games and have won just two of their last seven outings across all competitions. The sheer gulf in class and quality between the two teams should, however, see the La Liga outfit come out on top here.
Prediction: Unionistas 0-3 Villarreal
Unionistas vs Villarreal Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Result: Villarreal to win
Tip 2 - Goals - Over/under 2.5 - Over 2.5 goals (Each of the visitors' last five matches have produced more than 2.5 goals)
Tip 3 - Both teams to score: NO (Both sides have found the back of the net in just two of the hosts' last 16 matches)
