Real Sociedad vs Villarreal

Reale Arena sets the stage for a handsomely-looking La Liga showdown between Real Sociedad and Villarreal.

It’s not been an enviable season for Real Sociedad so far. In addition to enduring their worst 18-game La Liga start since 2018/19, the Basque giants failed to tie long-serving boss Imanol Alguacil down to a new contract during the winter break. Back-to-back winless league outings without scoring toward the end of the calendar year (D1, L1) might have deterred the club from offering the 53-year-old a new deal. However, a 2-0 Copa del Rey win over second-tier Ponferradina at the beginning of 2025 handed Real Sociedad a timely confidence boost ahead of Villarreal’s visit, with ‘La Real’ bidding to extend a five-game unbeaten home run (W4, D1). That sequence commenced with a famous 1-0 victory against Barcelona in early November. However, that remains their only win against La Liga’s current top six this season (W1, D1, L3).

Fifth-placed Villarreal rounded out an underwhelming December with a morale-boosting 5-2 triumph at Leganes, halting a dismal five-game winless league streak (D2, L3). However, the visitors haven’t won consecutive La Liga matches since the start of November, which is part of the reason they languish six points adrift of fourth-placed Athletic Bilbao. With a game in hand, they’re still firmly in the race for a coveted Champions League finish. But, they must find consistency on the road after blowing hot and cold across their last three La Liga travels (W1, D1, L1). Each game in that stretch saw them concede precisely two goals, highlighting Marcelino’s porous backline as the team’s weakest link. Against this backdrop, ‘El Submarino Amarillo’ haven’t capitulated more than once on their last six top-flight visits to San Sebastian (W4, D1, L1).