La Liga: Jornada 11 preview

ALL KICK-OFF TIMES CENTRAL EUROPEAN TIME (CET)

Winless Córdoba remain rooted to the bottom of the Liga table after drawing 0-0 at home to fellow strugglers Deportivo on Friday night. The Andalusian side were gifted the chance to take the lead from the penalty spot inside the opening 20 minutes, but Fabricio guessed correctly to keep out Federico Cartabia’s spot-kick. Depor striker Hélder Postiga, who was cautioned for handling inside the box, was shown a second yellow before the end of the first half, but Córdoba failed to make the most of their numerical advantage and their search for a first league win of the season goes on.

SATURDAY, 16:00: Barcelona will have the opportunity to recover top spot, if only for a few hours, when they travel to Almería on Saturday afternoon. The Catalans bounced back from last weekend’s shock reverse at home to Celta Vigo, which consigned them to back-to-back Liga defeats for the first time in over five years, with a Champions League win against Ajax in midweek. Luis Suárez is still yet to find the back of the net after three outings in a blue-and-red shirt and he will hope to break his duck against the Andalusian side, who have lost their last three Liga matches.

SATURDAY, 18:00: Goalshy Getafe, who have netted as many goals (8) as bottom club Córdoba, will host an Elche side who have won only once on the road this season. Elche’s one victory away from home came in Madrid – they defeated Rayo 3-2 in early September – and they will hope that that proves to be a good omen when they arrive at the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez in the south of the city.

SATURDAY, 20:00: Paco Jémez’s Rayo Vallecano will face the toughest task of any Liga team this weekend when they travel across the Spanish capital and attempt to halt Real Madrid’s 12-match winning streak. The league leaders look unstoppable but boss Carlo Ancelotti will have a tough decision to make as he looks to accommodate the fit-again Gareth Bale, who, the Italian confirmed, will start the derby fixture.

SATURDAY, 22:00: Toto Berizzo’s high-flying Celta Vigo stunned the Camp Nou last weekend and they will look to continue their impressive start to the campaign when they welcome an out-of-sorts Granada to Balaídos. Nolito, who was called up by Spain boss Vicente del Bosque for the first time on Friday, and the free-scoring Joaquin Larrivey will surely look to capitalise against a side who have lost five of their last six top-flight matches.

SATURDAY, 22:00: Saturday’s action will conclude at La Rosaleda, where Málaga will look to make it five Liga wins in a row by picking up three points against Eibar. Javi Gracia’s men have quietly crept up the table in recent weeks after an average start to the season, while momentum is back with newly-promoted Eibar after they ended a five-match winless run by edging a five-goal thriller at Rayo Vallecano last Monday.

SUNDAY, 12:00: A high-scoring fixture could be on the cards at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán on Sunday when Sevilla host Levante, who have the leakiest defence (29 goals conceded) in the Spanish top flight. Unai Emery’s men want to get their title challenge back on track after losing at Athletic Club last time out, while Levante will look to draw upon the confidence gained from their 2-1 win at home to Almería on matchday ten.

SUNDAY, 17:00 Espanyol and Villarreal will both head into their meeting at Power8 Stadium on the back of three-match winless runs. The hosts will be counting on Christian Stuani, who already has five league goals to his name, to do some damage, while Marcelino’s men need to resolve their defensive issues having conceded three goals in eight minutes during their Europa League defeat in Zurich on Thursday.

SUNDAY, 19:00: An already tough week for Athletic Club, which featured their pitiful early elimination from the Champions League, could get even worse when they travel to Valencia. Nuno’s resurgent side have been imperious on their own patch this term – they’ve won five out of five at the Mestalla, scoring three times on each occasion – and they could take top spot this weekend if results go their way.

SUNDAY, 21:00: The post-Jagoba Arrasate era at Real Sociedad will commence with the visit of champions Atlético Madrid. Asier Santana is in temporary charge of the Basque club and he has his work cut out while the club secure Arrasate’s long-term successor. Atleti have won five on the bounce in all competitions, while former La Real favourite Antoine Griezmann has finally found his feet at the club and could wreak havoc on his return to Anoeta.

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