Croatia
Indonesia
Nigeria
South Africa

Preview: Girona vs. Celta Vigo - prediction, team news, lineups

sportsmole.co.uk, 24 August 2022, 11:00
Girona play host to Celta Vigo on Friday evening looking to build on their promising start since earning a return to La Liga.

Meanwhile, the visitors are still searching for their first victory of the campaign, their most recent outing ending in a heavy defeat to Real Madrid.

Match preview

Having finished in the bottom half of the standings in 2021-22, Celta Vigo are under pressure to deliver an improved campaign this time around.

However, starting with a 2-2 draw at home to Espanyol was not what Eduardo Coudet would have hoped for ahead of playing host to the champions last weekend.

Even without Casemiro in the Los Blancos XI, Celta Vigo were overwhelmed by the visitors, conceding four goals in the opening 66 minutes before losing by a 4-1 scoreline.

Although Coudet's team were level at one stage, they capitulated like they did when holding a two-goal lead against Espanyol in the previous fixture.

While games with Girona and Cadiz represent an opportunity to get back on track, visits to Atletico Madrid and Valencia are lurking on the schedule after the upcoming double-header.

From Girona's perspective, Michel has to be delighted with his team's start to the campaign with a win over Getafe being posted at the start of this week.

Three goals were netted inside the opening 64 minutes to kick-start their campaign after a narrow 1-0 defeat at Valencia on the first weekend.

Despite this squad being boosted by several additions from clubs affiliated with City Football Group, beginning with three points from two games after only finishing sixth in the second tier last season will be deemed to be a success.

However, with a trip to the two Madrid clubs coming in October, Michel and his squad are under pressure to keep accumulating points over the next six weeks.

Girona La Liga form:

Celta Vigo La Liga form:

Team News

Barring any further injury issues, Michael could stick with the same Girona players which made relatively light work of Getafe.

While Samuel Saiz and Reinier are pushing for a chance in a creative role, Rodrigo Riquelme should retain his spot in the team.

As it stands, Santi Mina is the only player who is absent from the Celta Vigo squad for this fixture.

Coudet will contemplate whether to make a couple of changes, potentially including new arrival Carles Perez in the final third.

After starting the first game of the season, Augusto Solari was an unused substitute against Real Madrid, and he, too, may return to the starting lineup.

Girona possible starting lineup:

Martin; Bueno, Lopez, Juanpe; Couto, Herrera, Garcia, Riquelme, Gutierrez; Stuani, Castellanos

Celta Vigo possible starting lineup:

Marchesin; Mallo, Aidoo, Nunez, Galan; Cervi, Tapia, Beltran, Rodriguez; Aspas, Paciencia

We say: Girona 1-2 Celta Vigo

With a victory already on the board, Girona can afford to play with more freedom when they take to the pitch for this fixture. However, we cannot ignore the quality of the visitors, who we expect to edge this contest by the odd goal in three after a competitive game.

Previews by email

Top News

22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Dundee Utd vs. Celtic (Sunday, 12.00pm) Celtic, looking to maintain their unbeaten run in the Scottish Premiership, will travel to Tannadice Park on Sunday afternoon to face Dundee United. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Everton vs. Chelsea (Sunday, 2.00pm) Chelsea have the chance to go top of the Premier League for a brief time at least when they travel to Goodison Park to face Everton on Sunday. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk South American giants Palmeiras have reportedly sent an 'initial proposal' to Fulham for midfielder Andreas Pereira. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Nuno Espirito Santo will rival Arne Slot to win the Premier League's Manager of the Year award. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Barcelona want to sever ties with attacker Ansu Fati at the earliest opportunity in the January transfer window but the player is rebelling against a move, according to a report. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Bayern Munich winger Leroy Sane has confirmed that he wants to remain at the Allianz Arena despite links with a return to the Premier League next year. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Serie A powerhouses Napoli have supposedly expressed an interest in signing Manchester United defender Harry Maguire on a free transfer next summer. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Alexander Sorloth scored a last-gasp winner as Atletico Madrid defeated Barcelona 2-1 at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys to go top of the La Liga table. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal attacker Bukayo Saka has been seen leaving Selhurst Park on crutches after sustaining a suspected hamstring problem in Saturday's 5-1 Premier League win over Crystal Palace. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal have written a new page of English football history thanks to their 5-1 destruction of London rivals Crystal Palace in Saturday's Premier League derby. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Round 17 of the 2024-25 Turkish Super Lig will be wrapped up with a clash between two sides from the Marmara region, as Istanbul Basaksehir welcome Kasimpasa to the Basaksehir Fatih Terim Stadyumu on Monday evening. 21 December 2024 talksport.com Leicester loan star Facundo Buonanotte wants to see a Tottenham forward join him so they can rekindle their partnership. 21 December 2024 talksport.com Arsenal's rivals will hate it but they can definitely claim London is red after their 5-1 win over Crystal Palace. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal striker Gabriel Jesus continued his resurgence with two goals as the Gunners demolished Crystal Palace 5-1 in the Premier League at Selhurst Park. 21 December 2024 talksport.com Arsenal fans' worst fears have been realised with Bukayo Saka substituted early with a suspected hamstring injury. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal have suffered a worrying injury blow over Bukayo Saka, who appeared to pick up a hamstring problem in Saturday's Premier League clash with Crystal Palace. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Barcelona and Arsenal are reportedly both interested in signing Sevilla midfielder Lucien Agoume, with the France Under-21s international potentially leaving Estadio Ramon next summer. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Real Madrid have welcomed Ferland Mendy back into their squad for Sunday's La Liga clash with Sevilla. 21 December 2024 talksport.com Mykhailo Mudryk will be sat ringside at Oleksandr Usyk's rematch with Tyson Fury days after being suspended from football. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Southampton have confirmed the appointment of former Roma head coach Ivan Juric as their new manager following the departure of Russell Martin. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Newcastle United's 4-0 victory against Ipswich Town on Saturday afternoon at Portman Road ensured that they followed up their qualification for the EFL Cup semi-final with an important three points in the Premier League. 21 December 2024 talksport.com Southampton have confirmed ex-Roma boss Ivan Juric as their new manager to replace Russell Martin. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Nottingham Forest enhanced their Champions League credentials and condemned Brentford to their first home loss of the Premier League season with a 2-0 victory at the Gtech Community Stadium. 21 December 2024 talksport.com Jack Grealish burned some bridges with Aston Villa after taunting the club's fans following their victory over Manchester City. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk A fitting final Premier League match before Christmas Day, Tottenham Hotspur and Liverpool engage in a battle of the behemoths in North London on Sunday afternoon. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Aston Villa handed Manchester City a 2-1 defeat on Saturday, adding to the woes of Pep Guardiola's side, who have now endured nine losses in their last 12 matches. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Aston Villa head coach Unai Emery has claimed that his side decided to defeat Manchester City "through domination" on Saturday afternoon. 21 December 2024 talksport.com "This is a crisis." 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Real Madrid will be bidding to return to winning ways in La Liga when they welcome Sevilla to Bernabeu on Sunday. 21 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Real Madrid have added Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk to their wishlist for the summer transfer window, according to a report.