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Almeria host Celta Vigo in a Friday night La Liga showdown at the Estadio del Mediterraneo with kick off coming at 21:00 in the UK.
It’s a critical match for both sides so early into the season, with both teams near the bottom of the table and needing a win after a dreary start to the 2023/24 league campaign.
Almeria vs Celta Vigo predicted lineups and news
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After three games played in La Liga, both sides that compete on Friday are crying out for a victory, with both Celta Vigo and Almeria claiming just one point from their opening fixtures.
Last term, the hosts got the better of Celta Vigo in their first meeting of the 2022/23 season, as La Union were 3-1 winners back in October the last time they hosted the Sky Blues.
In their most recent match up, the sides were forced to settle for a draw at the Estadio de Balaidos in April, in a closely called affair that ended in a 2-2, forcing the sides to share the points.
Team news: Almeria
Vicente Moreno saw his side claim their first point of the season last weekend, as a last gasp injury time leveller from Kaiky Fernandes earned Almeria a draw against Cadiz, despite playing the majority of the second half with 10 men.
After being dismissed in the 50th minute, Edgar Gonzalez will be out of contention on Friday night as he serves his suspension for the red card.
On the injury front, only long term absentee Martin Svidersky is set to be unavailable as he nurses a knee injury.
Almeria predicted lineup
Maximiano, Pubill, Chumi, Kaiky, Akieme, Baba, Lopy, Embarba, Arribas, Ramazani, Suarez
Team news: Celta Vigo
The Sky Blues were desperately unlucky last time out, as they battled Real Madrid at home for the majority of the 90 minutes, however were struck down less than 10 minutes from time.
A Jude Bellingham winner in the 81st minute saw Rafael Benitez’s side have to suffer the loss, in what was a dignified performance against Los Blancos.
Like their competition on Friday, Celta Vigo picked up their first point of the campaign thanks to a very late equaliser, with Oscar Mingueza saving the day in injury time against Real Sociedad on match week two.
There’s no new injury updates to report since the last game, as Carles Perez and Goncalo Paciencia are set to once again be unavailable for selection.
Celta Vigo predicted lineup
Villar, Mingueza, Aidoo, Starfelt, Nunez, M Sanchez, Beltran, De la Torre, Bamba, Larsen, Aspas
Will Anastasios Douvikas play?
Signed by Celta Vigo earlier this week, striker Anastasios Douvikas could be a big problem for Almeria if he is ready to feature on Friday. The Greek forward netted 22 goals in 38 appearances in all competition for Utrecht last season, as well as contributing to four assists.
𝗢𝗙𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟 📣 Douvikas llega al Olimpo celeste 🇬🇷
El máximo goleador de la #Eredivisie, internacional con @EthnikiOmada, fortalece nuestra delantera hasta 2028 ✍️
¡Bienvenido, Tasos! Καλώς ήρθατε! 🙌#BenvidoDouvikas
— RC Celta (@RCCelta) August 28, 2023
Having already made two appearances in the Eredivisie before making the switch to La Liga, the 24-year-old is match fit, adding to his claim that he could feature in some capacity against Almeria.
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