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Granada logo
La Liga | Gameweek 2
Sep 20, 2020 at 5.30pm UK
Estadio Nuevo Los Cármenes
Alaves logo

Granada
2 - 1
Alaves

Soldado (7'), Machis (79')
FT(HT: 1-1)
Joselu (22')
Mendez (24'), Battaglia (26'), Lejeune (49')

Preview: Granada vs. Alaves - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Sunday's La Liga clash between Granada and Alaves, including team news and predicted lineups.

Granada will be looking to make it back-to-back wins at the start of their new La Liga campaign when they welcome Alaves to Estadio Nuevo Los Carmenes on Sunday night.

Diego Martinez's side won 2-0 against Athletic Bilbao in their season opener last weekend, while Alaves suffered a 1-0 home defeat to Real Betis, conceding in the 94th minute of the contest.


Match preview

Granada manager Diego Martinez pictured in February 2020© Reuters

Granada enjoyed a terrific 2019-20 campaign in Spain's top flight, picking up 56 points from their 38 matches to finish seventh, ensuring that they would be present in the qualifying rounds of the Europa League.

It was an excellent season for a club that had been promoted the season before after two campaigns in the second tier, while it was proved to be their highest finish in La Liga since 1973-74.

Martinez's side have also made a strong start to the new campaign, beating Athletic 2-0 in their opener last weekend courtesy of goals from Yangel Herrera and Luis Milla.

Granada were in Europa League action on Thursday, meanwhile, and ensured that they would be present in the third qualifying round courtesy of a 4-0 win over Teuta Durres in Albania.

The hosts will be determined to pick up another three league points this weekend before taking on Lokomotivi Tbilisi in the next round of the Europa League on September 23.

Alaves forward Lucas Perez pictured in December 2019© Reuters

Alaves, meanwhile, opened their 2020-21 La Liga season with a 1-0 home defeat to Betis last weekend; it did appear that the points were going to be shared at Estadio de Mendizorroza in a goalless draw, but Cristian Tello came up with a 94th minute winner for the visitors.

The Basque outfit have largely impressed since earning promotion to the top flight for the 2016-17 campaign, where they actually finished ninth. Last term was somewhat of a struggle, though, ending the season in 16th, just three points outside of the relegation zone.

Pablo Machin's side have been relatively quiet in this summer's transfer window, but they managed to secure a loan deal for Newcastle United's Florian Lejeune, while Deyverson has also arrived on loan from Palmeiras.

Alaves will be determined to put three points on the board as soon as possible, but Los Babazorros have lost each of their last three league games with Granada, including a 3-0 defeat in the corresponding game last term.

Granada La Liga form: W
Granada form (all competitions): WW

Alaves La Liga form: L


Team News

Granada players celebrate scoring against Athletic Bilbao on September 12, 2020© Reuters

Granada have no fresh injury concerns ahead of the match, and it would not be a surprise to see Martinez send the same group of players onto the field that started against Athletic.

Darwin Machis, Milla and Dimitri Foulquier did not feature in the Europa League on Thursday but should return to the starting side for Sunday's contest.

Herrera has now scored three times in two outings for Martinez's side this season, and the 22-year-old looks set for another advanced midfield role against Alaves.

As for Alaves, Manu Garcia remains on the sidelines through injury, but the Basque outfit are otherwise in good shape when it comes to absentees.

Lejeune is expected to come into the starting XI following his loan move from Newcastle, but Machin is likely to keep faith with his 3-5-2 formation.

Edgar Mendez and Luis Rioja were the wing-backs against Betis and that should again be the case this weekend, with former Premier League strikers Lucas Perez and Joselu featuring in attack.

Granada possible starting lineup:
Silva; Foulquier, Sanchez, Duarte, Neva; Herrera, Milla, Montoro; Machis, Soldado, Puertas

Alaves possible starting lineup:
Pacheco; Ely, Laguardia, Lejeune; Mendez, Pina, Battaglia, Pons, Rioja; Joselu, Perez


SM words green background

We say: Granada 2-0 Alaves

Alaves have now lost eight of their last 10 league matches and have failed to score in six of their last seven at this level. Granada, on the other hand, have scored at least twice in six of their last seven league outings, and we are expecting a routine home victory in this weekend's contest.


Top betting tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting a double chance bet on a home win or an away win in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Home/Away:data

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Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Granada win with a probability of 50.32%. A draw had a probability of 27% and a win for Alaves had a probability of 22.69%.

The most likely scoreline for a Granada win was 1-0 with a probability of 14.46%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (10.32%) and 2-1 (8.9%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (12.46%), while for an Alaves win it was 0-1 (8.73%). The actual scoreline of 2-1 was predicted with an 8.9% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Granada would win this match.


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Granada players celebrate scoring against Athletic Bilbao on September 12, 2020
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Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Real Madrid29226164204472
2Barcelona29197360342664
3GironaGirona29195559342562
4Athletic Bilbao29168550262456
5Atletico MadridAtletico29174854342055
6Real Sociedad291210742311146
7Real BetisBetis29101273433142
8Valencia28117103232040
9Villarreal29108114751-438
10Getafe2991193742-538
11Las PalmasLas Palmas29107122932-337
12Osasuna29106133343-1036
13AlavesAlaves2988132635-932
14Mallorca29612112535-1030
15Rayo Vallecano29611122538-1329
16Sevilla29610133644-828
17Celta Vigo2969143244-1227
18CadizCadiz29313132040-2022
19Granada2828183058-2814
20Almeria29110182857-2913


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