Real Sociedad travel to promoted Real Valladolid on Monday in La Liga aiming to pick up their first points on the road at the fifth attempt this season.
The two sides occupy positions in the middle ground of the relatively early league standings with Valladolid sitting one point ahead of Sociedad going into the game.
But, despite the fact the two sides have both won three of their opening eight games to date, it does not tell the full story going into this encounter at the Estadio Municipal Jose Zorilla.
Valladolid, who lost out at Malaga away from home last week thanks to a late goal for the hosts, have won two and drawn one of their four games on home soil so far, including a 6-1 thrashing of Rayo Vallecano at the end of September and can be backed at 11/10 to win this one.
However, the problem facing coach Miroslav Djukic is the loss of star striker Manucho Goncalves to suspension, while Lluis Sastre is set to miss out despite being near to a return after a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
Valladolid’s Basque visitors have stayed strong on their home patch with three successive wins before last Sunday’s 1-0 defeat against Atletico Madrid.
However, away from home has been a different story and coach Philippe Montanier will be desperate to find a formula to end a painful run of defeats against mainly lower league opposition in which they have only scored two goals and conceded 10.
Real Sociedad, 12/5 to win, have a host of injury doubts with Claudio Bravo, Ruben Pardo, Diego Irfan, Inigo Martinez and Liassine Cadamuro all looking to shake off respective problems to feature, while David Zurutuza and Gorka Elustondo are definitely out.
Past history is difficult to use to try and determine an outcome as the two sides have not met in La Liga since the 2003-04 campaign and that match ended all square in a 2-2 draw in Valladolid.
Sociedad have won almost twice as many meetings between the two clubs with 11 to six and there have been five draws.
On the basis that Valladolid will go into the game on the back of a moral denting defeat at Malaga, we feel Sociedad can finally stop the rot and secure a point in a low-scoring stale-mate.
Prediction: Draw 90 Minutes @ 9/4
Value Bet: 1-1 Correct Score @ 11/2
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