Battle royale as Barcelona host Real; Atlético square off with Madrid CFF in derby: Liga F Week 9 Preview
Real Madrid will be looking to end Barcelona’s dominance when the two teams clash at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys on Sunday afternoon.
Both teams were big hitters last weekend with Barcelona putting six past Villarreal with no response and Real Madrid winning 7-1 against Real Sociedad.
The hosts Barcelona will be hoping that midfielder Aitana Bonmatí continues with her goalscoring form having scored a brace during the UEFA Women’s Champions League (UWCL) match against SL Benfica on Tuesday. She scored another brace last weekend against Villarreal.
The visitors, on the other hand, will be banking on the form of defender Olga Carmona down the left side with able support from forward Athenea del Castillo who has been scoring for fun in the last matches.
The Madrid defence has to be at their best as they face a side with marauding forwards who have averaged four goals per game.
Barcelona also boast of having the meanest defence in the league having conceded only two goals in eight matches.
They will be looking to preserve their 100% start to the season whilst the visitors will be hoping to end that record and level the points as a loss will leave them six points behind their opponents.
The teams have met 13 times in competitive matches with Barcelona winning all of them.
Meanwhile, a Madrid derby looms as hosts Madrid CFF square off with cross-town rivals Atlético Madrid at the Estadio Fernando Torres on Sunday evening.
Both teams come into the match motivated after winning their last weekend matches with Madrid CFF winning 2-1 after coming from behind against Athletic Club whilst the visitors recorded a 3-0 win against a struggling SD Eibar side.
The visitors will be depending on the scoring prowess of former Villarreal forward Sheila Guijarro to add onto her five-goal tally whilst the hosts will be hoping that forward Racheal Kundananji rediscovers her goal scoring touch to also add onto her five goals this season as she eyes the golden boot.
The visitors look to end their continental football drought as they chase a top-three finish for the first time in three seasons.
The hosts, on the other hand, will also be aiming for a win to push for a top-three finish come end of season.
A win for Madrid CFF will take them to 21 points whilst a win for the visitors will take them to 19 points and above the hosts by a point.
The teams have met 12 times with Atlético winning seven, losing one and drawing four.
Fourth-placed Levante take their unbeaten run to the peninsula where they will face hosts UDCA Tenerife at the Campo Municipal de Fútbol de Adeje on Saturday afternoon.
The visitors will be motivated by their 3-1 victory over neighbours Valencia in the Derby del Turia last weekend whilst the hosts are hoping to redeem themselves from their 3-1 loss away to Levante Las Planas.
Levante have recorded three wins in a row and are banking on the services of forward Mayra Ramírez who has scored in back-to-back matches since her return from injury with last season’s top goal scorer Alba Redondo struggling for goals.
The hosts, on the other hand, will be banking on forwards Gift Monday, Jassina Blom and Rinsola Babajide for goals as they aim to bounce back and avoid a second defeat in a row.
A win for the hosts will take them to 15 points whilst a win for the visitors will take them to 21 points and remain unbeaten.
The teams have met 19 times with Levante winning 13, losing four and drawing two.
Levante Las Planas aim to extend their purple patch when they clash with hosts Real Betis on Sunday evening at the Ciudad Deportiva Luis del Sol.
The visitors have enjoyed a good start to the season and are hoping to build on that going forward and hope to make it three wins in a row whilst Real Betis look like they have found their way back with seven points in their last three matches and hope to also make it three wins in a row.
On the other hand, the hosts will be missing the services of forward Carmen Álvarez who suffered an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury to her left knee.
Forward Irina Uribe has found her scoring form at the right time to steer her team to victory after scoring a brace against Tenerife last weekend whilst Betis will be banking on midfielder Rosa Márquez for inspiration.
A win for the visitors will take them to 13 whilst a win for the visitors will move them to 18 points.
The teams have met twice with Las Planas winning one match and drawing one.
Valencia will be looking to put behind their 3-1 loss in the Derby del Turia last weekend when they face visiting Athletic Club on Saturday night at the Estadio Antonio Puchades.
The hosts will be looking up to forward Ivonne Chacón for goals to lead them to victory whilst the visitors will be placing their hopes on forwards Clara Pinedo and Ane Azcona as they aim to end their two match losing streak.
The hosts will be missing the services of defender María Molina through suspension after receiving a red card in the derby last weekend when she was shown two yellow cards in a space of one minute.
A win for the hosts will take them to 14 points whilst a win for the visitors will take them to 12 points.
The teams have met 25 times with Athletic Club winning 14, losing seven and drawing four.
Real Sociedad square off with visiting Sevilla at the Instalacións de Zubieta on Saturday evening.
The hosts will be aiming to bounce back from their humiliating 7-1 defeat at the hands of Real Madrid last weekend and will be hoping that inspirational skipper and forward Nerea Eizagirre will lead them to victory.
Sevilla, on the other hand, will be buoyed by their 1-0 win over struggling Granada after getting an 8-0 drubbing at the hands of Barcelona the other week and will be hoping to add more points against the equally struggling Sociedad side.
A win for the hosts will take them to 13 points whilst a win for Sevilla will take them to 12 points.
The teams have met 18 times with Real Sociedad winning nine, losing five and drawing four.
Granada will be looking to record their first win after seven consecutive losses when they clash with visiting Villarreal at the Ciudad Deportiva del Granada CF on Sunday afternoon.
The visitors have to confirm the availability of forward Francisca Lara who suffered an injury during their match against Barcelona last weekend whilst the hosts have no reported medical issues in their camp.
A win for the hosts will take them to six points which would take them out of relegation zone whilst the visitors’ win will take them to seven points.
The teams have not met before and it will be a historic win for either team.
SD Eibar will be aiming to utilise home advantage and register their second win of the season when they clash with bottom-placed Sporting Huelva at the Municipal de Ipurúa on Saturday evening.
A win for the hosts will take them to seven points whilst a win for the visitors will take them to four points and probably out of the relegation zone depending on other results elsewhere.
The teams have met six times with Huelva winning four and drawing two, giving them a better chance of collecting maximum points in this match.
Fixtures (Saturday): UDCA Tenerife vs Levante (12:00)*; Real Sociedad vs Sevilla (16:00); SD Eibar vs Sporting Huelva (18:30); Valencia vs Athletic Club (20:30)
Fixtures (Sunday): Barcelona vs Real Madrid (12:00); Granada CF vs Villarreal (14:00); Madrid CFF vs Atlético Madrid (16:00); Real Betis vs Levante Las Planas (18:00)
All times are Central European Time (CET)
*Peninsular Time