Osasuna vs Espanyol prediction: SPAIN: LaLiga betting tips on match 2025-05-17 17:00.
[p]One day after confirming that he would be departing at the end of the season, Osasuna head coach Vicente Moreno masterminded a 2-0 win over Atlético Madrid that guarantees they will have a shot at qualifying for Europe on the final day of the campaign. Currently level on points with eighth-placed Rayo Vallecano, Los Rojillos can further increase their chances by winning their last home game of the season as they host Espanyol.[/p]
[p]Moreno says achieving a top-eight finish would be the “icing on the cake” for his side, who are on the cusp of winning four successive home league games for the second time this season. Osasuna appear extremely likely to improve on last term’s finishing position of 11th in any case, especially as they haven’t lost their final home game of the season since 2021/22 (W1, D1).[/p]
[p]Espanyol suffered the ignominy of seeing local rivals Barcelona win the title on their own patch on Thursday as they slumped to a 2-0 defeat which leaves their La Liga status still uncertain. Although they are two places and five points clear of 18th-placed Leganés, they have an inferior H2H record, so still need two points to guarantee safety assuming a worst-case scenario of Leganés winning their remaining games and 17th-placed Alavés also overtaking them.[/p]
[p]Following promotion last term, the Parakeets looked on course to stay up only for their form to collapse spectacularly in the shape of four consecutive league defeats. Claiming just a single point from their last three away league games inspires little confidence, nor does an eight-match winless run in H2Hs at any venue (D4, L4), which includes three successive scoring blanks at El Sadar (D1, L2).[/p]
[p]Key battle: Defender Alejandro Catena opened the scoring for Osasuna against AtlĂ©tico but is usually more likely to pick up a yellow card – he has 11 in La Liga this term including four in his last eight appearances. He could have his hands full up against Espanyol’s Javi Puado, who has scored five of his last eight La Liga goals away from home, including four after half-time.[/p]
[p]Hot stat: There were exactly four yellow cards shown in five of Espanyol’s last seven away league fixtures. [/p]
[p][i]Written by John Pennington[/i][/p]