Elche CF vs. Villarreal 1/16/22 LaLiga Soccer Pick, Predictions, and Odds

Elche CF is hosting Villarreal at Estadio Martinez Valero in round 21 of the Spanish LaLiga. Elche has had some solid results as of late, and thanks to that, they are no longer in the relegation zone. Villarreal has been on fire lately, especially at home, and they should have beaten Atletico Madrid last weekend.

Elche is still a very weak team in the attacking end, they have scored only 20 goals, but their defense isn’t too bad with 28 conceded goals in 20 games. Elche has 19 points, and they are now in 16^th place. Elche has also won their Copa del Rey matchup last week, and they have won their LaLiga game against Espanyol. With 5 scored goals, Boye is the leading goalscorer for Elche, while Milla added 4 goals. Fidel, Casilla, Bigas, and Palacios are all injured, while Boye is still questionable, but he will probably be available for this game. The difference between the teams at the bottom of the table is not big, and the quality is pretty much the same between all of them, but if Elche can keep their defense on this level, I think they can save themselves from being relegated.

Villarreal is now undefeated in their last 5 LaLiga games, their offense has woken up, and they are scoring a lot of goals, even against strong defenses. In their last game against Atletico Madrid at home, Villarreal was losing, then they were leading, but the final score was 2-2. Villarreal has also missed a penalty kick in that game. There is still a lot of work to be done in Villarreal this season, they have advanced in the next stage of the Champions League, and they are slowly climbing the LaLiga table. Villarreal now has 29 points, 33 scored goals, and 22 conceded goals, and they are in 8^th place. When it comes to goals, Moreno is leading Villarreal with 8 goals, while Parejo added 6 assists. Coquelin, Pena, Danjuma, and Alcacer are all injured, and even though Villarreal could use some of these players, they still have a lot of talent left. I love Villarreal, I love the way they are playing, and I think they can do even better, and I think they will.

When playing at home, Elche has not lost to Villarreal in their last 3 games, but that won’t be the case here. Villarreal is in much better form right now, they are a much better team overall, and I see their positive run continuing here as well.