Vigo/ Almería, Apr 1 (EFE).- Almería faces a fire test this Sunday in Balaídos, where a reactivated Celta awaits them since the arrival of the Portuguese Carlos Carvalhal on their bench, with Gabri Veiga knocking on the door of the greats of the European football and Spanish international Iago Aspas immersed in the fight for his fifth Zarra trophy.
The duel can trace the future of both teams in LaLiga. A celestial victory would drive away the ghosts of the relegation of Balaídos and would feed the dream of the dressing room from Vigo of dreaming of reaching one of the European places.
However, their rival comes to the game much more in need, without victories at home so far this year, with a single victory in the last seven days and immersed in the relegation zone.
This negative dynamic of the team led by Rubi contrasts with the spectacular form of Celta, who went into the league break with a streak of five games without losing and eleven of the last 15 points in their pocket.
Carvalhal will not touch up his eleven after defender Óscar Mingueza, one of his fixtures in the starting eleven until he was injured in February, suffered another muscle injury in his right thigh this week.
His loss will keep Hugo Mallo on the right side. The captain has recovered the best version of him in the last month, overcoming the noise about his possible departure in the winter market to Atlético de Mineiro, a Brazilian club led by former sky-blue coach Eduardo “Chacho” Coudet. The only novelty, in principle, will be the commitment to Franco Cervi instead of the American international Luca de la Torre, who will rest after traveling with his team.
What UD Almería needs is to put an end to their null ability to win away from home, in addition to recovering options to stay in this duel in Balaídos, an unsuccessful venue for the rojiblancos, since they have only achieved one victory there, precisely in their last visit in the League (2014/15), but that did not help them to avoid relegation.
The people from Almería, who salvaged a point in added time from last day’s game against Cádiz, have had two weeks to train and improve the physical condition of players like midfielder Gonzalo Melero, who reappeared to play the second part against the cadistas and sign the tie, or the winger Alejandro Pozo, already recovered from his discomfort.
The Colombian forward Luis Suárez has also been restored, who at the beginning of this week withdrew from training with an overload, perhaps more as a precaution, for which he is emerging as a starter in Vigo with the intention of becoming, as in recent games , in the reference to the attack of the rojiblanco team.
It is unknown what approach the coach Joan Francesc Ferrer ‘Rubi’ intends to implement for the appointment in Balaídos and it will resemble the one used in the last outing, in the field of Sevilla, where Almería was close to achieving the long-awaited victory away from the Power Horse Stadium that has been resisting throughout the season.
In this way, it would not be ruled out that the Galician Juan Brandáriz ‘Chumi’ appeared on the right side, with the Sevillian Pozo ahead, so that Leo Baptistao would act more drawn to the center, without many variations, with the almost certain possibility of seeing to Melero, who would enter due to the loss of Iñigo Eguaras due to suspension.
This, due to suspension, and Dyego Sousa, Sergio Akieme and El Bilal Touré, due to injury, are the casualties with which the Unión Deportiva faces a match in which they will have to manage something they have not done for many days: dominate the areas, without making occasional errors that have conditioned the performance of the team, which is penultimate with 26 points, and have deprived it of victories that would have allowed it to be out of the relegation zone.
– Probable lineups:
RC Celtic: Ivan Villar; Hugo Mallo, Aidoo, Unai Nunez, Javi Galan; Carles Perez, Beltran, Gabri Veiga, Cervi; Aspas and Seferovic.
Almeria: Fernando; Chumi, Ely, Babic, Centelles; Well, De la Hoz, Melero, Robertone; Baptistao and Luis Suarez.
Referee: Hernández Hernández (Canarian committee)
Stadium: Ballads.
Time: 2:00 pm
