🏏 Thu, 27 Aug 2026 20:30 CEST
Celta Vigo
vs
Osasuna
3-4-3 vs 5-4-1
Substitutes
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- Both clubs come into this rearranged Matchday 1 fixture with a game in hand, having played Matchday 2 first. Celta drew 0-0 away at Valencia, Osasuna drew 0-0 at home with Levante, and the pair sit 11th and 12th on a single point apiece with a goal difference of zero. Neither has scored yet this season, and with Real Madrid already on six points, somebody needs to break the deadlock.
- Celta's 3-4-3 against Osasuna's 5-4-1 turns the wide areas into the decisive battleground. Javi Galan, 31, and Javi Rueda, 24, provide Celta's width from wing-back, while Osasuna's back five is bookended by Abel Bretones, 26, and 21-year-old Inigo Arguibide. With both sides crowding the centre, whoever wins the race to the touchline first should control the tempo.
- For Galan the night carries extra meaning: Osasuna are among his former clubs, a career that also took in Cordoba, Huesca, Atletico Madrid and Real Sociedad before he settled back at Celta. Standing just 170cm, the left-footed full-back relies on pace and relentless up-and-down running, and his crossing accuracy from the left wing-back slot is Celta's most reliable source of service.
- Iago Aspas remains the heartbeat of Celta at 39. The club's all-time leading scorer, a former Sevilla and Liverpool player, still strikes the ball beautifully with his left foot from open play and set pieces, and thrives in tight spaces. Finding pockets between Osasuna's back five, marshalled by the 194cm Catena and left-footed 190cm centre-back Jorge Herrando, is the assignment.
- Osasuna's aerial profile is among the most imposing in the division. Catena at 194cm, Herrando at 190cm and Bretones at 188cm form the base, with the 190cm anchor Lucas Torro and 189cm Moncayola in front of them, and 192cm striker Raul Garcia, a Copa del Rey winner with Real Betis, leading the line. Celta, whose midfield features the 165cm Ilaix Moriba and 170cm Galan, must defend set pieces flawlessly.
- Celta's back three mixes generations. Marcos Alonso, 35 and 188cm, brings Champions League experience from Chelsea plus spells at Barcelona and Fiorentina, and his left foot makes him a genuine threat from dead balls. Flanking him are two academy products, 22-year-old Joel Lago and 23-year-old Javi Rodriguez, who must be brave in possession against a side content to sit in a 5-4-1 block.
- The midfield contrast is stark. Ilaix Moriba, 23, came through Barcelona's La Masia and has since played for RB Leipzig, Valencia and Getafe, carrying the ball forward with surprising power and a fierce shot for a 165cm player. Osasuna answer with Lucas Torro, 32, who played Bundesliga football at Eintracht Frankfurt, and homegrown Moncayola, 28, whose ball-winning and size dominate the middle third.
- Osasuna's starting XI is soaked in club DNA. Captain Kike Barja, 29, joined at the age of eight and has never left, Moncayola signed a ten-year deal that made him the emblem of the project, 186cm Asier Osambela, 22, arrived at ten and climbed every age group, and Arguibide made his La Liga debut in 2024. Belgian Jonathan Dubasin, 26, formerly of Sporting Gijon, Basel and Girona, is the outsider adding a different flavour.
- The goalkeeping match-up is an underrated one. Ionut Radu, 29, is Celta's Romania international, a 188cm keeper schooled at Inter who has since worked in Italy, England and France with Genoa, Parma, Bournemouth and Auxerre. Osasuna trust the long-serving Sergio Herrera, 33 and 192cm. On Celta's bench sits Altay Bayindir, 28, the 198cm Turkey international formerly of Manchester United and Fenerbahce.
- The benches offer real weight late on. Celta can call on Ferran Jutgla, 27, a Barcelona product who scored freely at Club Brugge, Sweden international Karl Starfelt, 31, a serial league winner at Celtic, and 20-year-old Morocco forward El Abdellaoui. Osasuna have the 190cm Croatia international Ante Budimir, 35, playmaker Aimar Oroz, 24, who wears the number 10, and Moi Gomez, 32, a Europa League winner with Villarreal.