Real, Atlético clash in Madrid derby, Sociedad face Levante, Barcelona meet struggling Alhama: Liga F Week 12 Preview
A mouth-watering Madrid derby between Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid is looming at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano on Sunday night.
There is a lot at stake as both teams are eyeing to stop Barcelona dominance in the Liga F and a win for either side will be a welcome feat in their pursuit for glory.
The hosts will be hoping that their forwards led by Esther González and the in-form Naomie Feller will be at their best whilst the visitors might still be missing the services of reliable goal scorer Ludmila who was injured two weeks ago.
Both teams are doing well though Real Madrid are the more consistent of the two sides and will be hoping for big returns in this high-profile encounter.
The teams have met five times with Real Madrid winning two and losing the other three. Atlético Madrid have won both matches played at this venue giving them a high probability of winning this match.
Elsewhere, sixth-placed Real Sociedad clash with third-placed Levante at the Estadio Anoeta on Sunday evening.
The hosts have been a pale shadow of themselves compared with last season and need to start winning matches to entertain any hopes of playing champions league football again next season whilst Levante have had a memorable start to the season.
Leading goal scorer forward Alba Redondo will be hoping to add to her 10-goal tally for the visitors and Sociedad will be hoping that their defence is at its best to stop her.
The hosts will be looking to replicate last weekend’s performance against log leaders Barcelona where they almost ended the champions’ winning streak.
The teams have met 23 times with Levante winning 11, losing five and drawing the other seven.
Defending champions Barcelona have a potentially easy fixture against a struggling Alhama CF ElPozo side at the Estadi Johan Cruyff on Saturday night.
The Blaugranes will be hoping to put aside their 3-1 defeat against Bayern Munich in a champions league match on Wednesday night and safeguard their 100% Liga F record this season.
The hosts had a lacklustre performance against Sociedad last weekend in which they needed a last-minute winner and will be hoping that their forwards will provide more goals against minnows Alhama.
Alhama, on the other hand, have found the going tough and will hope that forward Jade Boho uses her experience in the league to punish the hosts.
The teams have not met before and it will be a record for Alhama to beat Barcelona, more so in their first encounter.
Madrid CFF have a date with visiting Valencia at the Estadio Municipal Nuevo Matapiñonera on Saturday afternoon.
The Madrid side have a chance to move to third place for 24 hours before other teams play if they manage to collect maximum points whilst Valencia will also look to move up the standings in a bid to finish in the top eight.
The hosts, buoyed by their 2-0 win against Athletic Club last weekend, will come into this match wanting nothing short of maximum points whilst the visitors will be looking to do better than last weekend when they lost narrowly to Atlético Madrid.
Madrid CFF will be hoping that last weekend’s two-goal heroine Racheal Kundananji is at her usual best to add to her nine goals this season.
The teams have met nine times with Madrid CFF winning four, losing three and drawing the other two. The hosts have not lost a match at home against Valencia giving them all the hope to collect maximum points.
Athletic Club will be looking to bounce back from a 2-0 defeat to Madrid CFF when they meet Real Betis away at the Ciudad Deportiva Luis de Sol on Sunday afternoon.
The visitors have been equally struggling for form and will look to add more misery to a Betis side which has struggled this season collecting 10 points from 11 games.
The teams have met 13 times with Athletic Club winning five, losing two and drawing six.
Villarreal hosts Sporting Huelva at the Ciudad Deportiva on Sunday afternoon.
Sporting Huelva came back twice last weekend to force a two-all draw against Alavés and hope to take that fighting spirit to Villarreal this weekend whilst Villarreal want to build on their 1-0 win against Alhama last weekend to collect maximum points and move away from the relegation zone being just four points from the relegation spot.
A win for Huelva will be crucial as they are not safe from relegation with just 12 points from 11 matches.
The teams have met twice and all matches ended in a stalemate.
Relegation threatened Alavés will be hosting Sevilla at the Ciudad Deportiva José Luis Compañón on Sunday afternoon.
The hosts counted themselves unlucky last weekend as Huelva came back twice to force a two-all draw to dent the former’s survival hopes as they remained second from bottom and in danger of getting relegated.
The visitors will be missing the services of midfielder Rosa Otermín and defender Morgane Nicoli who both received red cards in the 92nd minute and 93rd minute respectively in their 2-all draw against UDG Tenerife last weekend.
The teams have met twice with Sevilla winning their home fixture and drawing the other match.
Inconsistent UDG Tenerife host struggling newcomers Levante Las Planas at the Estadio La Palmera on Sunday afternoon.
Tenerife are finding it tough this season and will be looking to collect maximum points from a Las Planas side that has recorded seven defeats in 11 matches.
The visitors will be hoping that experienced forward Mari Paz will come to their rescue against an equally inconsistent Tenerife side.
Tenerife know that a win will take them to 15 points and might move them to eighth position if the teams above them fail to collect maximum points.
The teams have not met before with either team looking to make history by winning the first meeting whilst boosting their chances of relegation survival.
Fixtures (Saturday): Madrid CFF vs Valencia (12:00); Barcelona vs Alhama CF ElPozo (19:00)
Fixtures (Sunday): Alavés vs Sevilla (12:00); Villarreal vs Sporting Huelva (12:00); UDG Tenerife vs Levante Las Planas (14:00)*; Real Betis vs Athletic Club (16:00); Real Sociedad vs Levante (18:00); Real Madrid vs Atlético Madrid (20:00)
All times are Central European Time (CET)
*Peninsula Time