New strength of La Liga: Osasuna Club sets out to conquer the top

Deportivo Alavés welcome Málaga CF to Mendizorroza on Friday, 23 October 2026 (kick-off 21:00 CEST) in a LaLiga EA Sports matchday 10 clash that could hardly arrive at a better moment for the hosts. Alavés sit seventh in the table on 11 points and are pushing toward the European conversation under Enrique Sánchez Flores, while newly promoted Málaga, back in the top flight after an eight-year absence, prop up the league in 20th place with just four points from nine matches — the only winless side in the division. The Andalusians have also been battered away from La Rosaleda, conceding heavily at Real Madrid, Atlético and Villarreal, and Friday's trip to Vitoria-Gasteiz looks like one of the toughest assignments of their survival fight.

Recent form underlines the gulf between the two sides. Alavés were narrowly beaten 2-1 at Balaídos last weekend despite Hugo Novoa's late strike, and before that they pushed Atlético Madrid all the way in a 1-2 home defeat that Flores called their best performance of the month. Málaga, by contrast, were thrashed 2-5 by Real Sociedad at La Rosaleda in their last outing — their worst home result of the campaign — and had previously been held 1-1 by Espanyol despite playing against ten men for over an hour. With the Basques averaging 1.6 goals per game and Málaga shipping 1.6 per match, the trend lines point clearly in one direction.

Racing Santander welcome Espanyol to the Campos de Sport de El Sardinero on Saturday 24 October 2026 (kick-off 16:15 CEST) for a LaLiga Matchweek 10 clash between two promoted sides desperate to pull away from the drop zone. Both teams arrive locked on 8 points from nine matches, with Racing sitting 16th on goal difference after a turbulent return to the top flight following their 14-year absence, while Espanyol occupy 15th. With El Sardinero expected to be packed for one of the season's most atmospheric fixtures, the hosts will look to veteran playmaker Sergio Canales and top scorer Andrés Martín to inspire a first home league win since September, in what promises to be a tight, high-intensity Cantabrian evening.

Recent form tells a worrying story for both camps. Racing were beaten 2-0 at Osasuna last weekend after squandering a lead in a 2-2 home draw with Valencia, results that extended a run of just one win in six and kept José Alberto López's men searching for defensive consistency following September's heavy defeats at Celta Vigo and Barcelona. Espanyol's slump is arguably deeper: Manolo González's side fell 0-1 at home to Atlético Madrid on Friday and could only manage a 1-1 draw at Málaga before the international break, leaving the Barcelona-based club without a league victory in October and increasingly anxious about their away form, having also lost at Rayo Vallecano earlier in the campaign.

Rayo Vallecano host Elche at the Campo de Fútbol de Vallecas on Saturday, October 24, 2026, in a LaLiga clash that pits 13th-placed Rayo against an Elche side sitting 18th with just seven points from nine matches. Rayo come into this fixture in solid if unspectacular form under Beñat San José, unbeaten in their last two league outings after a 1-1 draw away to Getafe on Monday night, where Álvaro García opened the scoring and Sergio Camello hit the bar in a dominant second half. That result followed a hard-earned 1-1 draw at Osasuna and a morale-boosting 2-1 home win over Espanyol, giving the Vallecas faithful real hope that their team can pull clear of the relegation conversation. Elche, meanwhile, arrive in Madrid winless in their last four league games, having ground out back-to-back 0-0 stalemates at Villarreal (0-0) and at home to Celta Vigo (0-0) after their only away win of the campaign, a 3-1 triumph at Espanyol (3-1).

For the 2026/27 season, Rayo Vallecano's squad under San José is built around goalkeeper Emil Audero, with a defensive line of Iván Balliu, Florian Lejeune, Mujaid Sadick and Adrià Pedrosa, a midfield engine of Unai López and Pathé Ciss, and an attacking unit featuring Isi Palazón, Sergio Camello — already the club's standout scorer — Álvaro García and Jorge de Frutos. The home side's injury list remains a concern, with Andrei Rațiu, Luiz Felipe and Augusto Batalla all unavailable, though Balliu and Pedrosa have returned to full fitness. Elche's 2026/27 roster, coached by Anselmi, leans on Iñaki Peña in goal with Víctor Chust, Léo Petrot and Pedro Bigas at the back, Marc Aguado, Martim Neto and Aleix Febas in midfield, and Rafa Mir leading the line, but they will be without Adam Boayar, Grady Diangana, Andrés Osorio, Yago Santiago and the suspended Federico Redondo Solari.

Valencia host Villarreal at Mestalla on October 24, 2026, in a LaLiga regional derby that arrives with both sides in very different moods. Valencia sit 19th with just 6 points from nine matches, still searching for consistency under their coaching staff, with captain José Gayà urging the group to become "more stable" after the 0-0 home draw against Athletic Club, a result that kept the side winless at Mestalla. The Che's 2026/2027 squad features Stole Dimitrievski in goal, a back line built around Gayà, César Tárrega and Pablo Maffeo, a midfield anchored by Pepelu, Guido Rodríguez and Javier Guerra, and an attack led by Arnaut Danjuma, Hugo Duro and Umar Sadiq, with the electric Harvey Elliott providing creativity from wide areas.

Villarreal, sitting 12th with 9 points, arrive with the psychological edge in this fixture, having won the last three league meetings between the sides, including a 2-1 victory at La Cerámica in February. The Submarino Amarillo's season has been a mixed bag: they were held to a 0-0 stalemate by Elche despite dominating possession, but produced a statement 3-1 Champions League win over Napoli in midweek, with Georges Mikautadze among the goals. Marcelino's 2026/2027 squad blends youth and experience: Luiz Júnior in goal, defenders Renato Veiga, Sergio Mouriño and Pau Navarro, a mobile midfield of Pathe Gueye, Nicky Saliba and Amadou Diatta, and a dangerous forward line featuring Gerard Moreno, Mikautadze and José Gaitán.

Athletic Club host Getafe at San Mamés on Sunday, 25 October 2026 in a LaLiga EA Sports Matchday 10 clash, and the Lions arrive with momentum after a resilient defensive display last time out. Edin Terzić's men picked up a hard-fought point at Mestalla in a goalless stalemate against Valencia on 17 October, a match in which Unai Simón was outstanding and César Tárrega cleared an effort off the line, as shown in our 0-0 match report. Before the international break, Athletic were held at home by Deportivo Alavés in a frustrating 0-0 draw and earlier shared the points with Elche in a 1-1 draw at San Mamés, results that have left Terzić demanding more cutting edge from his 2026/27 squad, which features Unai Simón in goal; Hugo Rincón, Aitor Paredes, Aymeric Laporte and Johaneko Louis-Jean in defence; Íñigo Ruiz de Galarreta and Beñat Gerenabarrena in midfield; and Álex Berenguer, Peio Canales, Robert Navarro and Iñaki Williams in attack.

Getafe, meanwhile, travel to Bilbao with confidence brimming after an unbeaten week across two competitions. José Bordalás' side fought back to draw the South Madrid derby against Rayo Vallecano in a 1-1 home result on Monday night, and just four days earlier they secured a valuable point away in Romania against Universitatea Craiova, as detailed in our 1-1 Conference League review — though they were dismantled 3-0 by Barcelona at Camp Nou in our 3-0 match analysis, where they failed to register a single shot on target in the first half. Bordalás is expected to field his trusted 2026/27 spine of David Soria in goal; Djené, Nemanja Gudelj and Johan Mojica across the back; Kiko and Mario Martín in the engine room; with Enes Ünal and Martín Satriano leading the line, although injuries to Iván Azón, Orel Mangala, Zaid Romero, Christantus Uche and Juanmi limit his rotation options.

As of October 21, 2026, the first LaLiga Clásico of the 2026/27 season is set for Sunday, October 25 at Spotify Camp Nou, with Barcelona hosting Real Madrid in a matchday-10 showdown that already feels like a title-race checkpoint. Hansi Flick’s Barcelona are the form team domestically: nine league wins from nine, 27 points, 39 goals scored and only nine conceded, and their 5-2 win at Betis equalled Real Madrid’s record for the best start to a LaLiga season, meaning victory over Madrid would make it ten straight and put the outright mark in Catalan hands.

Barcelona’s only recent blemish came away to PSG in the Champions League, but domestically they have been relentless, adding a 4-1 European win over Galatasaray to a league run built on high pressing, quick transitions and heavy chance volume. Robert Lewandowski, Ferran Torres, Marcus Rashford, Raphinha and Lamine Yamal give Flick multiple scoring routes, while Pedri, Gavi, Dani Olmo and the returning Frenkie de Jong control tempo behind a defense featuring Pau Cubarsí, Eric García, João Cancelo, Alejandro Balde and goalkeeper Joan García.

Celta Vigo and Real Betis close out LaLiga Matchday 10 on Sunday, October 25, 2026, at the Estadio Abanca-Balaídos, with both clubs juggling domestic duties alongside a packed European schedule. The Sky Blues come into the clash off a morale-boosting 2-1 home win over Alavés, where Claudio Giráldez's side showed real resilience to edge a tight encounter despite missing several first-team regulars. Three days earlier, however, Celta tasted defeat in Europe, slipping to a 1-2 loss at Balaídos against Juventus after Hugo Álvarez had given them a first-half lead, while the 0-0 draw at Elche before the international break underlined their ongoing scoring inconsistency this autumn.

Real Betis arrive in Vigo in the middle of an electric week on home soil at La Cartuja. Manuel Pellegrini's men were on cloud nine after a dramatic Champions League comeback win over FC Porto, sealed by an Isco penalty in a 3-2 thriller, and had earlier dismantled Osasuna in a goal-fest, running out 5-2 winners with Isco netting twice. That momentum was checked in sobering fashion on Saturday, though, as Barcelona stormed to a 5-2 victory in Seville, a result that also saw Facundo Bernal sent off late on — a suspension that leaves Pellegrini short-handed in midfield for the trip north.

Real Sociedad host Levante at the Reale Arena in San Sebastián on Sunday, October 25, 2026, in a LaLiga EA Sports Round 10 clash that pits fifth against seventeenth. The Txuri-Urdin arrive in fine form after a spectacular 2-5 away win at Málaga in which Mikel Oyarzabal scored twice and Gonçalo Guedes also found the net, while Levante were held to a draw at Riazor in their last outing. Real Sociedad sit fifth with 16 points from nine matches, firmly in the European race, whereas Levante are 17th on just seven points and still searching for consistency under Luís Castro.

Imanol Alguacil's side look built to dominate this fixture, with a settled 2026/27 squad featuring Álex Remiro in goal, the experience of Oyarzabal leading the line, and creative sparks such as Luka Sučić and Guedes supplying the ammunition. Levante's options include Mathew Ryan between the posts, Aïssa Mandi and Jeremy Toljan in defence, and an attack led by Roger Brugué and Iván Romero, who have three league goals apiece this season. Levante did show real fight in their 3-3 home thriller against Sevilla, but their away record remains a major concern heading to the Basque Country.

AEK Larnaca host Omonia Nicosia at the AEK Arena on Monday, October 26, 2026, in one of the headline fixtures of matchweek 7 in the 2026/27 Cyprus First Division. Kick-off is set for 17:00 UTC, and the game carries extra weight at the top of the table: AEK Larnaca sit second with 13 points from six matches, just two behind leaders AEL Limassol, while Omonia arrive in strong shape after an impressive European run. Historically this derby is razor-thin — across all competitions the head-to-head reads 25 Omonia wins, 23 AEK wins and 13 draws — so another tight contest is expected in Larnaca.

Omonia's confidence comes largely from Europe, where they have been one of the surprise packages of the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League league phase. After edging LaLiga side Celta Vigo in Nicosia, the Green-and-Whites produced a statement away performance in Slovenia, cruising past NK Celje by 0-3 on October 15 to make it two wins from two in the competition, following their 1-0 victory on Matchday 1. Henning Berg's squad for 2026/27 has been significantly refreshed, with Jaden Montnor, Florin Tănase, Andronikos Kakoullis, Loïs Diony, Lubomír Šatka, David Akintola and loanee goalkeeper Thomas Kaminski all arriving, although Carel Eiting and Fotis Kitsos remain sidelined through injury. In league action Omonia were held to a 2-2 draw by Olympiakos Nicosia last time out and had previously shared the points in a 1-1 derby with Apollon Limassol in March.

Sevilla welcome Osasuna to the Estadio Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán on Monday, 26 October 2026 (21:00 CEST) for a LaLiga 2026/27 showdown between two of Spain's most resilient sides. Despite operating under financial restrictions, Luis García Plaza's Sevilla have punched above their weight and sit sixth in the table with 14 points, although they arrive winless in three after a frustrating spell: a late collapse in the 3-3 draw at Levante, having led twice, followed by a heavy 4-1 defeat at the Bernabéu against Real Madrid. Remarkably, Sevilla have scored in all nine of their league matches this season, a streak they will be desperate to extend in front of their home faithful.

Osasuna, sitting tenth with 11 points, are a team transformed under returning boss Jago Arrasate, who was brought back to El Sadar after Luis Miguel Ramis's brief reign ended badly. In his first game of his second spell, Arrasate oversaw a morale-boosting 2-0 home win over Racing Santander, with goals from Ante Budimir and Asier Osambela, though that victory came on the back of a miserable away run that included a 5-2 thrashing at Betis. The Navarrese outfit have lost their last three away fixtures, conceding 14 goals in the process (2-5 at Alavés, 0-4 at Atlético, 2-5 at Betis), and their defensive fragility on the road remains the biggest concern heading to Andalusia.