🏏 Sun, 18 Oct 2026 16:15 CEST
Celta Vigo
vs
Deportivo Alavés
3-4-3 vs 5-3-2
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Match Preview
- Celta Vigo sit 12th on eight points from eight matches, a tally built on five draws to go with a single win and two defeats, and a goal difference of just +2. Alaves arrive three points better off in seventh on 11 points with a +4 difference, so a home win would flip the pair in the table. For Celta the other direction matters too: only one point separates them from Levante in 17th.
- Neither side comes in convincing. Celta have drawn four of their last five — 0-0 at Real Sociedad, 1-1 at Getafe, 1-1 at home to Malaga and 0-0 at Elche — with their lone victory a 5-0 rout of Racing Santander at home in round seven. Alaves lost 2-1 at that same Racing side in round five and have gone four games without a win since: 0-1 at home to Valencia, 0-0 at Athletic Club and 1-2 at home to Atletico Madrid.
- The shapes set up an intriguing battle on the flanks, with Celta's 3-4-3 facing a 5-3-2 from Alaves. Sergio Carreira, a natural right-back of just 170cm who covers enormous ground, operates on one side for the hosts, while left-footed Spain Under-21 winger Hugo Alvarez (23) attacks from the other. They run straight at the outside men of the Alaves five: Argentine Nahuel Tenaglia (30), formerly of Talleres, and Abdelkabir Rebbach (28), a Vitoria-raised player whose natural position is left wing.
- Two Alaves starters return to the club where they once played. Johny, 32, came through at Celta before spells at Atletico Madrid, Wolverhampton Wanderers and PAOK, and the two-footed full-back has also been capped by Spain. Up front, Lucas Boye (30) is another former Celta man, an Argentine striker who won the Copa Libertadores with River Plate and whose relentless pressing from the front sets the tone for his side.
- The visiting bench carries more Celta history. Denis Suarez, 30, spent time at Barcelona, Arsenal, Manchester City and Villarreal as well as Celta, and his final ball and close control remain his calling cards. Miguel Rodriguez, 23, is a Celta academy graduate who went on to play in the Netherlands with Utrecht. If the game opens up late, either man could punish the side that developed him.
- Celta's back three is anchored by Sebastian Caceres, the 27-year-old Uruguay international who signed from Club America in September 2026 on a deal running to 2030. A three-time Liga MX champion in Mexico and part of Uruguay's 2026 World Cup squad, his reading of the game and duel strength will be tested by Toni Martinez, the 187cm target man who spent four years at Porto. Either side of Caceres are academy products Joel Lago (22) and Javi Rodriguez (23).
- The midfield match-up pits different profiles against each other. Alaves build through Carles Alena, the 28-year-old left-footed La Masia graduate with Betis and Getafe on his CV, screened by Real Madrid academy product Antonio Blanco (26) and Pablo Ibanez (28), who worked his way up through Osasuna's youth system. Celta counter with Ilaix Moriba (23), the box-to-box runner who has passed through Barcelona and RB Leipzig and combines physicality with a fierce shot.
- Celta's front three has a distinctly international flavour. Sweden international Williot Svedberg (22), a 187cm Hammarby product, lines up alongside Ferran Jutgla (27), the Barcelona academy graduate signed from Club Brugge in 2025 whose pressing and runs in behind define his game, and Morocco-born Couhaib Driouech (24). Driouech is a right-footed left winger who scored twice against Liverpool in the Champions League during his PSV days.
- The benches could decide a tight finish. Celta can call on Iago Aspas, now 39 and the club's all-time leading scorer, plus Marcos Alonso (35), the left-footed set-piece specialist who won honours at Chelsea and Barcelona. Alaves counter with Marco Diaz (33), a Dominican Republic international who lifted the Champions League and LaLiga at Real Madrid before spells at Lyon and Sevilla.