Preview & Betting Tip
Almeria - Sporting Gijon Given that in this round of Segunda there is no classic derby, this match seemed as the most interesting, but not because of the situation on the table where the third Almeria has even 12 points more than Sporting who is in the 14th place, but because it is a match of two former La Liga clubs which not too long ago played among the elite. Sporting was relegated last season and Almeria one season earlier, and as things stand now it could also return earlier. Right now Sporting is in a slightly better form, and they have won Almeria in the first half of the season with 2-1. When it comes to matches in Almeria, Sporting has never won in recent history and has drew only once in eight matches. Begins: 24.03.2013 – 17:00 CET
Almeria
Almeria this season wages a big battle to return in La Liga and is now in the third place, but only two points below the second position, so they have a realistic chance for success. They could have been better positioned if at the end of last year haven’t been defeated in three consecutive matches in which they did not score a single goal. Two of the defeats were at home. New Year’s break was therefore welcomed, because after it they lost only once in nine rounds. However, in the last two rounds again lost two times, of which was particularly troublesome the defeat from the direct competitor Las Palmas at home. In this season Almeria unexpectedly lost lot of points at home, but they are the second most successful team in the league in away games. Standard midfielder Soriano is not eligible to play in this match because of the exclusion in the last round when they lost in Cordoba with a high 4-1, but the rest of players is available to the coach Tell Garcia. The biggest star of the team is the first league scorer, the striker Charles.
Probable lineups Almeria: Esteban – Gunino, Pellerano, Marcelo Silva, Fernandez – Verza – Corona, Calvo, Falque – Charles, Suarez
Sporting Gijon
Sporting’s definitely expected more this season, especially since they just dropped out from the elite rank of the competition, so they clearly set the return among the best as the first goal. The first five rounds in which they did not win immediately showed there will be nothing out of it, even though they can objectively still reach the leading position for the playoffs. They have all in tens; ten wins, ten draws and ten defeats and one very interesting series of nine matches without a defeat, in which they played 1-1 as many as seven times. They are much better at home, which was best demonstrated in the previous round when they outclassed Barcelona B with 5-2, although they received the first goal, while three rounds ago have won Girona with 4-0. Coach Sandoval has a big problem with the team on the eve of this match, because there will be no Borje Lopez and Ivan Hernandez (suspension due to showed cards), and Ricardo because of an injury. This will cause significant changes in the team and will certainly impact the team from Gijon.
Probable lineups Sporting Gijon: Cuellar – Lora, Espinosa, Mandi, Canella – Casquero, Bustos – Nacho Cases, Santi Jara, Oscar Trejo – Bili?
Almeria – Sporting Gijon
Although it seems that Sporting is currently in a better shape, Almeria has the advantage in this match. Sporting plays much worse away matches, and they are weakened with absence of some important players, so we believe in the triumph of the host.
Better's Tip: 1
Stake: 3/10
Odds: 1.85
