Espanyol isn’t a team capable of competing against Villarreal. Espanyol is one of the weakest teams in the league. Their squad is even worse than last season in the Second Division, as they haven’t made any significant transfers and have lost several key players.

Their performances so far have been poor: they only managed to earn points against Atlético Madrid (0:0, which was a miracle given the number of chances they conceded), Rayo Vallecano (2:1, with a lucky comeback and a goal in the 96th minute), and Alavés (3:2 in a game where they were dominated at home, with fewer expected goals, fewer shots, and less than 40% possession).

In every game, Espanyol has conceded many chances, which is the main reason for this pick. Villarreal has one of the best attacks in the league, and given Espanyol’s inability to maintain control and prevent opportunities, I expect them to concede at least a couple of goals here.

The coach mentioned that he doesn’t want a box-to-box game, but they don’t know how to defend deep in their area. They tried it against Atlético (0:0) but ended up conceding 2.67 expected goals, 25 shots, and had a goal conceded disallowed by VAR. Their only wins came in chaotic, end-to-end games (Alavés, Rayo Vallecano). Against Real Madrid, after scoring a fortunate goal, they attempted to defend but conceded the equalizer within four minutes and two more goals within 20 minutes.

Puado is their main man up front and their best player. However, they lack quality, a reliable scorer, a solid defense, and the squad depth needed to handle midweek rounds.

On the other hand, Villarreal is one of the strongest teams in the league. They have a great coach with effective tactics, and their attack could compete in the Champions League. They have plenty of options up front, a deep squad—which is a significant advantage for midweek fixtures—and are full of confidence.

Although they are coming off a heavy defeat against Barcelona (1:5), they still created many chances. Villarreal has scored 12 goals in 6 games.

Their weak point is their defense, as they are an easy team to score against. However, given Espanyol’s weak attack, I don’t think this will be an issue. Villarreal has much more quality, particularly in midfield and attack, to dominate this game, create chances, and convert them. For Espanyol to win, they would likely need to score 2-3 goals, which I seriously doubt they can do.

西班牙人不是一支有能力与比利亚雷亚尔竞争的球队。西班牙人队是联赛中最弱的球队之一。他们的阵容甚至比上赛季在乙级联赛还要糟糕，因为他们没有进行任何重大的转会，而且失去了几名关键球员。

到目前为止，他们的表现都很糟糕:他们只在对阵马德里航空公司(0:0，考虑到他们失去的机会数量，这是一个奇迹)，巴列卡诺(2:1，在第96分钟幸运的逆转和进球)，以及阿拉夫萨斯(3:2，在主场他们被控制的比赛中，他们的预期进球，射门次数少，控球率不到40%)的比赛中拿到了积分。

在每场比赛中，西班牙人都丢了很多机会，这也是这次被选中的主要原因。比利亚雷亚尔拥有联盟中最好的进攻之一，鉴于西班牙人无法保持控制和阻止机会，我希望他们在这里至少丢几个球。

教练提到他不想要一场一对一的比赛，但他们不知道如何在他们的区域内防守。他们曾尝试用这种方法对付亚特兰蒂斯(0:0)，但最终丢了2.67个预期进球，射门25次，还有一个进球被VAR判为无效。他们唯一的胜利都是在混乱的端到端比赛中取得的(阿拉夫·萨默斯和雷约·巴列卡诺)。在对阵皇马的比赛中，他们在打入一个幸运的进球后，试图防守，但在4分钟内被扳平比分，在20分钟内又被打进两球。

普亚多是他们锋线上的主力，也是他们最好的球员。然而，他们缺乏质量，一个可靠的得分手，一个坚实的防守，以及需要处理周中回合的阵容深度。

另一方面，比利亚雷亚尔是联赛中最强的球队之一。他们有一个伟大的教练和有效的战术，他们的进攻可以在冠军联赛中竞争。他们在前场有很多选择，一个后腰阵容——这在周中比赛中是一个显著的优势——并且充满信心。

虽然他们刚刚在对阵巴萨的比赛中惨败(1:5)，但他们仍然创造了很多机会。比利亚雷亚尔在6场比赛中打进12球。

他们的弱点是防守，因为他们是一支容易得分的球队。然而，考虑到西班牙人的弱进攻，我不认为这将是一个问题。比利亚雷亚尔有更强的实力，特别是在中场和进攻端，可以控制这场比赛，创造机会，转化机会。对于西班牙人来说，他们可能需要进2-3个球，我非常怀疑他们能做到。