Sporting Gijon Osasuna Odds: Life after Manuel Preciado
Sporting Gijon will be looking for crucial La Liga points in their battle against relegation when they host mid-table Osasuna on Sunday afternoon.
Sporting – who are manager-less after sacking Manuel Preciado last week – currently sit 19th in the table. They are only three points from safety though, so they are in touch with survival.
With this in mind, it is worth noting that many felt Preciado’s sacking was extremely harsh.
He has kept the club in Spanish football’s top flight since promotion in 2008 and may well have done the same again this year.
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However, Sporting’s form in recent weeks has been very poor. They have lost four of their last five games, with a 5-1 reverse at Real Sociedad most recently.
Regardless of whether Preciado should have been sacked or not though, Sporting need to focus on the job in hand, starting with this weekend’s vital home clash with Osasuna.
As for the visitors, well they are sitting relatively comfortably in mid-table going into this one. They are 10th in the table, seven points from the relegation zone and nine points adrift of the Champions League places.
Looking at their recent form doesn’t make for particularly good reading though. They haven’t won in four games, with a narrow home defeat to Atlético Madrid last time out.
Their away form is a concern too. So far this season, Osasuna have only won once on the road, managing just eight goals in the process. This is something they would love to put right at Sporting Gijon on Sunday afternoon.
In this fixture last season, it was the home side that came out on top with a 1-0 victory back in April. A single goal could well be enough for the points again this time as these two teams prepare for a competitive, closely fought 90 minutes of football.
