Spanish side Real Sociedad host Monaco in a UEFA Europa League Group B fixture at Reale Arena with both teams in search of their first win in this year’s competition. Sociedad's lengthy injury list means Thursday’s fixture is likely to be a tricky one but they often do their best work at home and still retain enough quality to bag a win.
Real Sociedad played out a 2-2 draw at PSV Eindhoven in their opening fixture of the Europa League. They came from a goal down to lead before the break through Adnan Januzaj and Alexander Isak but conceded the equaliser in the second half.
Isak has since joined a growing injury list which includes David Silva, Asier Illaramendi and Nacho Monreal. However, those injury problems did not seem to affect them much last time in La Liga as they claimed a 1-0 victory over Elche with Mikel Oyarzabal getting the goal.
It has been a generally good start to the season for Real Sociedad, who are second in La Liga and have not lost since a 4-2 defeat to Barcelona in their opening fixture. Imanol Alguacil's men have a solid record at home and have claimed three wins from their last four matches at Real Arena.
Monaco were victorious in their opening fixture in the group as they edged out Sturm Graz 1-0. They were dominant throughout and could have won by more but in the end had to settle for Krepin Diatta’s second half effort.
After enduring a difficult start to the season, things appear to be looking up for Monaco in recent weeks. Nico Kovac’s men have won three of their last four matches and travel to Sociedad off the back of a 3-1 victory over Ligue 1 strugglers Clermont in their previous fixture.
Despite showing some improvement lately, Monaco are still slightly unconvincing on their travels. They have claimed just two wins in their last five away matches and are likely to find things difficult in Sociedad.
How the bookies view it
Real Sociedad have the upper hand among the bookies and are priced at 7/5 by SBK to claim the win. A victory for Monaco is valued at 29/14 by Vbet while a draw is set at odds of 28/11 by SBK.
Head to head
The only previous meeting between Real Sociedad and Monaco was a friendly at the Reale Arena back in June with the hosts claiming a 2-1 victory.
Players to watch
Mikel Oyarzabal has scored five La Liga goals for Real Sociedad this season and was on target against Elche last Saturday. The forward often provides the attacking spark and is priced at 89/50 by Sporting Index to find the net.
Wissam Ben Yedder also had a slow start to the season but appears to be finding some form in recent weeks. The French striker has scored in his last three matches and is priced at 6/5 by bet365 to continue that run.
Anything else catch the eye?
Monaco have seen over 3.5 goals in their last three matches and could be set for a repeat at 23/10 with BetVictor while over 2.5 goals is valued at 10/11 by bet365. Given the quality in both attacks, there is likely to be BTTS at 5/7 with SBK.
Real Sociedad have taken the lead in three of their last four home matches and can be tipped to score first at 10/11 with Skybet.
This UEFA Europa League match between Real Sociedad and Monaco will be played on Sep 30, 2021 and kick off at 17:45. Check below for our tipsters best Real Sociedad vs Monaco prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
