LALIGA EA SPORTS Matchday 3 preview

The first midweek round of the 2024/25 LALIGA EA SPORTS season is about to take place, with matches being played across the final Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of August. There are some very intriguing fixtures on the schedule, including tricky away games for FC Barcelona and Real Madrid, as well as a Basque derby between Real Sociedad and Deportivo Alavés. 

Quickly following the excitement of Matchday 2, the third round of the season begins with the Monday night showdown between Villarreal CF and RC Celta. Both of their meetings last season were five-goal thrillers, with each team winning 3-2 when they played at home. Villarreal CF would love a repeat victory at the Estadio de la Cerámica this term. 

There are then two more games on Tuesday, starting with RCD Mallorca vs Sevilla FC. It’s already the second trip off the peninsula this season for Sevilla FC, who’ll hope to do better than their 2-2 draw away at UD Las Palmas, as new coach García Pimienta aims to demonstrate that the Andalusian club can have a positive season. 

At 21:30 CEST on Tuesday, it’s Rayo Vallecano vs FC Barcelona and this could be a tricky game for the Catalan outfit, as they’ve struggled in Vallecas in recent years. Since Rayo Vallecano returned to LALIGA EA SPORTS three years ago, Barça have failed to win in Vallecas, as Los Franjirrojos have won twice and there has been a draw too. That means FC Barcelona haven’t won a league game away at Rayo Vallecano since 2018, something they’ll look to change this midweek. 

Wednesday brings up four more fixtures, starting with two simultaneous matches at 19:00 CEST. One is a duel between two of the newly promoted teams, Real Valladolid and CD Leganés, and they know that every point is vital, even at this early stage of the season. The other game at that earlier kick-off time is Athletic Club vs Valencia CF, a classic Spanish football fixture between two of the most storied clubs in the competition. 

Two more games follow at 21:30 CEST on Wednesday, and one of them is a Basque derby between Real Sociedad and Deportivo Alavés. The fans of La Real were left frustrated after their first home game of this season, when they fell to a 2-1 loss to Rayo Vallecano, so Imanol Alguacil’s side understand how important this next home game is, especially considering it’s against a local rival. 

Atlético de Madrid vs RCD Espanyol is the other fixture taking place on Wednesday night. When Los Blanquiazules were last in LALIGA EA SPORTS, they managed to draw both of their duels against Atleti that season, but Diego Simeone will be counting on the home support to steer his team to victory on this occasion. 

Two more fixtures follow on the Thursday night of this midweek round, including Girona FC’s first home game of the season, when they host CA Osasuna in Catalonia. This is a changed Girona FC squad, but coach Míchel will hope for more magic at the Estadi Montiliv this season, considering they won 15 of their 19 home matches en route to Champions League qualification last term. 

Then, the final slice of midweek action is a tasty UD Las Palmas vs Real Madrid duel on Thursday night. Like with Sevilla FC, this is also a second game away against one of the island clubs for Real Madrid and Carlo Ancelotti’s squad will remember just how difficult it was when they drew 1-1 away at RCD Mallorca in the opening round. UD Las Palmas should provide a tough test too, especially considering it took an 84th minute Aurélien Tchouaméni header for Los Blancos to win this fixture 2-1 last term.

It promises to be a fascinating Matchday 3, with nine games spread across four midweek evenings and with Real Betis vs Getafe CF to follow too in the near future, after Los Verdiblancos have completed their UEFA Conference League playoff round duties.