🏏 Sun, 6 Sep 2026 21:00 CEST
Espanyol
vs
Sevilla
4-2-3-1 vs 4-3-3
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- Espanyol sit 14th on three points from three matches, while Sevilla arrive ninth on six. Both clubs have a game in hand on most of the division and, curiously, identical goal differences of +1. With Barcelona already clear at the top on 12 points from four games, neither side can afford to drift in a head-to-head worth three points.
- The hosts opened with a 3-0 home win over Levante but have since lost twice, 2-1 at home to Real Madrid and 2-1 away at Real Sociedad, for a W-L-L sequence. Sevilla beat Rayo Vallecano 2-1 at home and won 3-1 away at Athletic Club before losing 3-1 to Atletico Madrid on their own ground, leaving them W-W-L.
- Espanyol goalkeeper Marko Dmitrovic faces his former club. The 34-year-old Serbia international won the Europa League during his time at Sevilla, where his shot-stopping at 194cm and his reputation as a penalty specialist were established. He is also left-footed and comfortable playing out from the back, which matters against a side that presses in a 4-3-3.
- At the other end stands Odysseas Vlachodimos, the 32-year-old Greece keeper who played Champions League football at Benfica before spells at Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United. At 188cm, with the distribution he honed at Stuttgart, he offers Sevilla a similar profile to Dmitrovic, making this a duel between two experienced, ball-playing goalkeepers.
- Espanyol's 4-2-3-1 leans on a double pivot of Edu Exposito, the 30-year-old technician schooled at Deportivo and Eibar, alongside 20-year-old Gabriel Moscardo. The Brazilian is on loan from Paris Saint-Germain and spent last season at Braga, where he made 39 competitive appearances and helped them reach a Europa League semi-final. Holding the centre against three Sevilla midfielders is their task.
- Sevilla's midfield trio is deliberately varied. Jon Guridi, 31 and left-footed, came through Real Sociedad's academy and can operate as an attacking midfielder as well as a central one. Lucien Agoume, 24, arrived from Inter Milan and at 185cm combines ball recovery with clean distribution. Completing them is Georgia international Giorgi Kochorashvili, 27, signed in August 2026 on a deal to 2030 after a Sporting CP season that included two Champions League outings.
- The most direct individual battle is on the flank. Nigeria winger Chidera Ejuke, 28, attacks from the left with the pace he showed at CSKA Moscow, Hertha Berlin and Royal Antwerp. Facing him is Omar El Hilali, the 22-year-old academy right-back who twice turned down offers from Barcelona to stay at Espanyol and whose game is built on sharp tackling and forward runs.
- The centre-back pairings offer a contrast in experience. Espanyol field 35-year-old Leandro Cabrera, a 190cm left-footed Uruguayan with years behind him at Atletico Madrid and Getafe, next to 29-year-old Unai Nunez, an Athletic Club product known for reading the game. Sevilla counter with 24-year-old academy graduate Kike Salas, left-footed at 188cm, and Senegal's Arnaud Sangante, 24 and 189cm, who captained Le Havre at 21.
- Both centre-forwards are tall and young. Espanyol's Roberto Fernandez, 24 and 186cm, made his name at Malaga, spent time on loan at Barcelona B and scored a winner on his debut after joining on loan from Braga. Sevilla start Robbie Ure, the 189cm Scot born in 2004 who has been handed the responsibility of improving the side's output in front of goal.
- There is genuine depth on both benches. Espanyol can call on Pere Milla, the 33-year-old left-footed forward whose career has taken in Elche, Eibar and Getafe, plus Dutch left-back Quilindschy Hartman, an Eredivisie winner with Feyenoord. Sevilla hold back academy striker Isaac Romero, 26, whose left-foot finishing is his calling card, and Barcelona-schooled Peque Fernandez, 23.