Villarreal vs Espanyol — match summary
Spain · La Liga · kick-off 31 Oct 2026 03:00
Full time · score 0-1
pPS pre-match readiness (0-100): Villarreal 64 · Espanyol 27
mPS in-play performance (0-100): Villarreal 41 · Espanyol 52
Shots on target 4-3 · corners 7-3 · possession 63-37
NextGOAL tip: Villarreal -1 · 2 stars
Villarreal have met Espanyol many times and have hardly ever let the other side take anything away, from the 4-1 at home early in the year to the 0-2 at Espanyol's ground late last year. But this time the pattern of play is not quite the same, because Villarreal have just thrashed 5-0 at home in the cup in their latest match, while Espanyol have not won in 5 straight games. Villarreal have won two in a row in all competitions, but in the league they are still not steady: from 10 games, 3 won, 3 drawn, 4 lost, 15 scored, 14 conceded. Espanyol, meanwhile, have fallen badly out of form: 2 won, 2 drawn, 6 lost, 12 scored, 14 conceded, and in their latest league match they lost 1-2 at home. A defence that concedes an average of 6.5 shots on target per game over the last 10 matches is a sign that the back line still cannot cope with teams that keep the ball well. If Villarreal dominate possession and push the game high as they have done at an average of 57.5% over the last 10 matches, Espanyol will likely drop deep and wait for the counter. The game will be squeezed into the visitors' half, and if the hosts score first, Espanyol, who have not won in 5 straight games, will have to open up, which is exactly the moment Villarreal are best at finding more goals.