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

The Yellow Submarine are fifth in the table, five points behind fourth-placed Real Sociedad, while Celta occupy 13th position, eight points clear of the relegation zone heading into the next set of fixtures.

Match preview

Villarreal are very much in the argument for a top-four finish at this stage of the season, with Quique Setien's side currently fifth in the table, five points behind fourth-placed Real Sociedad.

Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid appear to have cemented their spots in the Champions League positions, but Real Sociedad are far from comfortable in fourth, and Villarreal will be aiming to close the gap when they welcome Celta to Estadio de la Ceramica.

The Yellow Submarine were 4-2 winners over Espanyol on Thursday evening, with Etienne Capoue registering twice, and Dani Parejo and Nicolas Jackson also getting their names on the scoresheet.

Villarreal have finished seventh in their last two La Liga campaigns and have not claimed fourth since 2015-16, so it could be a very successful campaign for the club.

El Submarino Amarillo have been strong in front of their own fans this season, picking up 29 points from 15 matches, which is the fifth-best home record in the division, but Celta have claimed a respectable 16 points on their travels, and the Sky Blues certainly have the talent to make this a very difficult match.

Celta have only lost one of their last four La Liga games against Villarreal, meanwhile, and the points were shared when the two teams locked horns in Vigo towards the start of January.

Carlos Carvalhal's side have no real relegation fears at this stage of the season, sitting 13th in the table, eight points clear of the bottom three, while they are just two points behind 10th-placed Girona.

A top-half finish should be the aim for Celta in the closing weeks of the campaign, which is something that they have achieved on only one occasion since 2016.

The Sky Blues will enter this match off the back of a 1-0 victory over Elche on Wednesday evening, with Joseph Aidoo coming up with a 90th-minute winner against the team at the bottom of the division.

The success was Celta's first since the middle of March and eased any slight fears that they could be dragged closer to the relegation zone entering the latter stages of the campaign.

Villarreal La Liga form:

W

W

W

L

L

W

Celta Vigo La Liga form:

W

D

D

L

L

W

Team News

Villarreal were missing five players through injury against Espanyol and that will again be the case for this match, with Raul Albiol, Jose Luis Morales, Kiko Femenia, Gerard Moreno and Francis Coquelin all out.

Head coach Setien will need to assess the fitness of his players before naming his lineup, but it would not be a surprise to see an unchanged side for the Yellow Submarine.

Alex Baena and Ramon Terrats are both options to come into the side, but the pair should start on the bench once again, with Cepoue and Parejo featuring in the middle of the park.

As for Celta, Diego Alves, Oscar Mingueza and Agustin Marchesin remain on the sidelines through injury.

Head coach Carvalhal is likely to make a couple of changes to the side that took to the field for the first whistle against Elche, with Oscar Rodriguez potentially coming into a midfield area.

Meanwhile, there could be a change in the final third of the field, with Goncalo Paciencia possibly dropping down to the bench to allow Jorgen Strand Larsen to feature alongside Iago Aspas in the final third of the field.

Villarreal possible starting lineup:

Reina; Foyth, Mandi, P Torres, A Moreno; Parejo, Capoue; Chukwueze, Lo Celso, Pino; Jackson

Celta Vigo possible starting lineup:

Villar; Mallo, Aidoo, Tapia, Galan; Perez, Veiga, Rodriguez, De la Torre; Larsen, Aspas

We say: Villarreal 2-1 Celta Vigo

This has all of the makings of a very interesting match, as Villarreal look to continue their push for the top four. There is no real pressure on Celta, which could work in the away team's favour on Sunday, but we are still expecting the Yellow Submarine to navigate their way to an important three points.

Previews by email