Pick the Draw at Sevilla

Sevilla v Celta Vigo
Friday April 7 2023, 15:00 ET
At Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan

Sevilla is on its third manager of the season and in-form Celta Vigo can take advantage of its opponents’ struggles to earn another useful point on the road.

Who do Bettors Favor?

A check of the top-rateed bookmakers shows that bettors are favoring Sevilla to win on Friday evening though not by a huge margin as the home team is rated at just a +125 chance for victory here. Celta Vigo can be wagered at odds of +235 while the draw is priced as a +235 chance.

Sevilla v Celta Vigo
Sevilla	+125	+124	+120
Draw	+240	+234	+235
Celta Vigo	+237	+228	+235

Sevilla Searching for Defensive Resilience

Now on its third head coach of the season, Sevilla has slumped dramatically after last year's fourth place in La Liga. Julen Lopetegui was fired due to a poor run of form, but his replacement Jorge Sampaoli was unable to return the team to the top six and was fired at the end of March, and Jose Luis Mendilibar was handed the job of rescuing the season.

A 2-0 victory in Cadiz was a great start, but Sevilla remains only four points above the relegation zone. With games left to play against Real Betis, Real Madrid, and Real Sociedad, Mendilibar will want to make sure that his team is well out of danger before then.

In light of this, Sevilla's clean sheet in Cadiz is positive. It has conceded three or more goals on six occasions this season, including a 6-1 loss to Atletico Madrid that may have accelerated the departure of Sampaoli, and more defensive resilience will be needed over the remaining weeks of the campaign.

Celta Confident of Top Half Finish

Celta Viga has also changed managers this season, but with a much greater impact than Sevilla, as Carlos Carvalhal has led a revival that has lasted into 2023 and propelled the club from the relegation zone to the top half of the Spanish table.

Since the World Cup pause, Carvalhal's squad has gone unbeaten in six consecutive games and has only lost twice, both defeats by just one goal.

The team remains seven points off the European qualifying places, which may prove to be an insurmountable deficit, but there is genuine hopefulness that a comfortable top-half position can be secured as a stepping stone to a successful 2023/24 season. A strong record on the road is one of the keys to Celta's success and one of the reasons why the team heads to Seville with confidence.

OSB La Liga Betting Head-to-Head

The head-to-record between these teams has been fairly even, in fact, since the early 1990s, the results show 17 wins for Celta and 17 wins for Sevilla, with 9 draws.

Celta was able to match Sevilla from 2017 to 2020, winning three home matches including a 4-0 victory in 2018. However, since the 2020/21 season, Sevilla has controlled the matchup and Celta has not won any of its last five meetings, although it has drawn its last two.

In this season's reverse fixture, Celta took the lead through Gabriel Veiga at the Estadio de Balaidos, but Sevilla equalized through Kike Salas with 54 minutes remaining, and the visitors were able to hold on for a draw despite Jose Carmona's late red card.

La Liga Betting Team News

Sevilla will be missing four key players for this match, according to the latest team news. Karim Rekik, Papu Gomez, and Marcao are out with injuries, while forward Lucas Ocampos is suspended for this game after receiving a yellow card against Cadiz.

Fernando, whose suspension has expired, is eligible for this game but it is more likely that the head coach will stick with the squad that faced Cadiz. Erik Lamela is the most likely candidate to replace Ocampos, though Oliver Torres and Suso are also possibilities.

The injury list for Celta Vigo is also lengthy. Augusto Solari, Agustin Marchesin, Oscar Mingueza, and Diego Alves are all hampered by injuries that will keep them out of this game. Gabri Veiga is also ineligible after receiving a yellow card in the previous league match against Almeria. Renato Tapia will likely replace Veiga, while Haris Seferovic and Iago Aspas are expected to start up front.

OSB La Liga Betting Picks

Sevilla's fall from prominence has been spectacular, but its new head coach's immediate priority is to shore up the defense. This could result in a cautious approach against a team in good form. Celta Viga has earned 15 points in 13 away games this season, while Sevilla has the fourth-worst home record in the division, so a draw appears to be the best pick in the match betting market.