Espanyol
- RCD Espanyol are slight favourites with the oddsmakers to beat a resurgent Girona FC on Friday in a local Catalan contest that should be close and entertaining.
- Espanyol have won 3, drawn 1 and lost 1 of their last 5 games in a consistent run that has them fifth in the table on 34 points from 19 games.
- Espanyol’s recent form has seen them dip slightly, falling to a 2-0 home defeat to Barcelona and then following up with a 1-1 draw away at Levante last weekend.
Girona
- Girona are 13th on 21 points with a mixed bag of results in the same number of games, but they come into this game on the back of consecutive wins.
- Girona have won back-to-back games, beating Mallorca 2-1 away and Osasuna 1-0 at home, which was an opportune time to get back to winning ways.
Head-to-Head
- Espanyol’s record at the RCDE Stadium has seen them win 6, draw 1 and lose 3 of their 10 home LaLiga matches with an average of 1.30 goals scored and 1.20 conceded.
- Girona have won only 2 of their 9 away games in the Spanish top flight, with 3 draws and 4 losses, but they have improved on the road recently.
- Espanyol have not beaten Girona in their last two attempts - drawing 0-0 in Girona in April - and have failed to win in their last 4 meetings, with Girona claiming one victory and three draws.
Key Players
- Pere Milla has scored six LaLiga goals in 17 appearances to top the Espanyol charts and provide them with a focal point up front.
- Girona’s Ukrainian marksman Vladyslav Vanat has five LaLiga goals in 16 games, which is the joint-highest for any player at the club and should be a focal point for them.
- Viktor Tsigankov has also scored three of Girona’s last six goals and looks to be going through a purple patch at an opportune moment.
Betting Insights
- Espanyol are favourites for this game at 1.84, while Girona are 4.2 with the draw priced at 3.45.
- With both sides possessing an attacking threat, but neither prolific, we will take Both Teams To Score at 1.9 and Under 2.5 Goals at 1.8, which looks about right given Espanyol are scoring and conceding at similar rates at home.
Prediction
Espanyol have a better overall home record and much more tactical discipline than their opponents, but with Girona showing recent away improvement and a few in-form strikers we feel this will be closer than the betting lines suggest.
