Sevilla will be looking to strengthen their grip on a top-four spot in La Liga when they welcome relegation-threatened Cadiz to Estadio Ramon on Friday night.
The home side are currently third in the table, six points ahead of fifth-placed Real Betis, while Cadiz occupy 17th position, just one point ahead of 18th-placed Granada.
Sevilla have lost to Barcelona and Real Madrid in two of their last four La Liga matches but victories over Granada and Levante have kept them firmly inside the top four, with Julen Lopetegui’s side currently third in the table, six points clear of fifth-placed Real Betis with five matches left.
Los Nervionenses are also level on points with second-placed Barcelona (63), so they are in a strong position to challenge for the runners-up spot, which would go down as a very successful campaign.
Lopetegui’s side, who shaded a five-goal thriller against Levante last time out, disappointingly lost to West Ham United in the Europa League, but they have not finished higher than fourth in La Liga since 2009 and are therefore on course for an excellent season in Spain’s top flight.
Sevilla will face Villarreal (A), Mallorca (H), Atletico Madrid (A) and Athletic Bilbao (H) in their final four league matches of the campaign, and they could finish the season with the strongest home record in La Liga, having collected 37 points from their 16 league games at Estadio Ramon.
Rojiblancos recorded a 1-0 victory over Cadiz in the reverse league match earlier this season, while they ran out 3-0 winners in the corresponding fixture at Estadio Ramon last term.
Cadiz, meanwhile, will enter the match off the back of a 3-2 defeat to Athletic Bilbao on April 21, with the Yellow Submarine unable to recover from a three-goal first-half deficit despite launching a late comeback.
Sergio Gonzalez’s side are very much in the relegation mix at this stage of the campaign, currently sitting 17th in the table, just one point ahead of 18th-placed Granada on the same number of games (33).
Cadiz will take on Elche (H), Real Sociedad (A), Real Madrid (H) and Alaves (A) in their final four league matches of the campaign, and the clashes with Elche and Alaves are likely to be vital, as they might not get too much change out of Sevilla, Real Sociedad and Real Madrid.
Los Piratas were excellent on their return to Spain’s top flight last season, finishing 12th in the table, and they are bidding to make it back-to-back campaigns at this level of football for the first time since 1993.
Cadiz have the worst home record in La Liga this season, but they have actually been relatively impressive on their travels, picking up 17 points from 16 matches, so the fact that this match is away from Nuevo Mirandilla could be a positive for the Andalusian outfit on Friday night.
Sevilla La Liga form:
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Sevilla form (all competitions):
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Cadiz La Liga form:
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We say: Sevilla 3-1 Cadiz
Cadiz are in desperate need of the points as they bid to remain in the league, but Sevilla also need to win to boost their top-four hopes, and we are finding it very difficult to predict anything other than a victory for Lopetegui’s side, who have been excellent at home this season.