Villarreal vs H. Beer Sheva Prediction & Tips
Villarreal begins a new stage after the unexpected departure of Unai Emery, the coach with whom they won the 2020-21 UEFA Europa League (UEL), their first major title. Quique Setién is now the commander of the Yellow Submarine, and the veteran Cantabrian coach makes his debut this Thursday at the Ciutat de València against Hapoel Beer Sheva in the fifth round of Group C of the UEFA Europa Conference League (UECL). It is not easy to assimilate the departure of such an important figure as Emery (Aston Villa), under whose command Villarreal reached the semifinals of the last edition of the Champions League, but at least their presence in the round of 16 of the UECL is already assured thanks to a record of 12/12 points.
The groguets, who will advance as group winners no matter what happens in the final two rounds, are the only team in this UECL to have won a major European title this century. After coming from behind to beat Almeria 2-1 with a goal in the 94th minute, Villarreal have now won six of their seven matches (G6, E1) at the Ciutat de València, their temporary home during the renovation of the Estadio de la Cerámica. That series includes a 5-0 win over Austria Vienna in their last UECL home game.
While Villarreal are the only club to have already sealed their place in the Round of 16, Hapoel have yet to win in this group stage (E3, P1). In their ninth consecutive European campaign, the Israeli side could miss out on advancing to the knockout stages if they fail to win in Valencia.
Elyaniv Barda’s side are unbeaten on the road in the UECL (G2, E3 including qualifiers) and are coming off a 4-1 win away to Hapoel Jerusalem. It is the lack of away wins in group stages that has slowed their progress in UEFA competitions (G1, E4, P6), failing to win away since their debut in a group stage (2016-17). In their previous campaign in a European competition group, Hapoel lost all three of their away matches (UEL 2020-21).
Players to watch: Álex Baena is with four goals one of the top scorers of this UECL, and one of those goals gave Villarreal the victory in their visit to Hapoel on matchday 2 (HAP 1-2 VIL). One of the Israeli team’s main offensive references is Rotem Hatuel, who has scored five times in European competition this season.
A series of highlights: Hapoel’s last seven away goals have been scored by seven different players.
Villarreal – H. Beer Sheva FREE TIPS
OVER 2.5 GOALS @ 2.25
