Real Sociedad vs Oviedo: La Real look to keep home form flying as basement boys arrive in Anoeta
Real Sociedad host rock-bottom Oviedo looking for a fourth straight home win, while the Asturians are desperate for a shock result to ease their relegation fears.
Real Sociedad want revenge for one of the more embarrassing early-season results under their new project — and Oviedo are rocking up to Anoeta hoping to do it all over again.
La Real’s situation
Imre Matarazzo’s side come into this one in decent nick, all things considered. They’ve had a proper rest after a brutal run of four games in 11 days, which culminated in that defeat at the Bernabéu last weekend — a result that ended their unbeaten streak in 2026. The good news is that the manager was clearly managing legs at the Bernabéu, and several key players who were benched that day — Caleta-Car, Sergio Gómez, Turrientes, and Guedes — are all expected to return to the starting XI here.
Carlos Soler also looks set to keep his place, despite missing some training sessions recently due to becoming a new dad. Fair play to him, honestly.
What La Real need:
- A fourth consecutive home win
- To avenge that first-leg defeat at the Carlos Tartiere
- Three points to keep pushing towards European football
Oviedo’s situation
The Asturians are in a proper bit of bother. They’re sitting dead last in Primera División, nine points adrift of safety with Rayo Vallecano currently marking that survival line. Coming off a defeat to Athletic, they desperately need something from this trip.
Manager Guillermo Almada is without two important players — David Costas is injured, and Argentine midfielder Santiago Colombatto is suspended. Colombatto’s absence is a big deal; he’s one of Oviedo’s most-used players this season, and replacing him is the main talking point heading into the game.
Nico Fonseca, the Uruguayan midfielder signed in January from Club León (previously of River Plate), is expected to step in — and it would be his first ever Primera División start. No pressure, mate.
Other absentees for Almada:
- Ovie Ejaria – the English midfielder is back in training after months out but still not at full capacity
- David Costas – injured
- Santiago Colombatto – suspended
Javi López — on loan from Real Sociedad, awkwardly enough — is set to start at left back for the visitors.
The key duel: Oyarzabal vs Chaira
The match-up to watch is the battle of in-form strikers. Oyarzabal has been on fire in 2026, bagging five goals in five league games. Chaira, meanwhile, has chipped in with three and has been one of the few bright spots for Oviedo in a grim season. Both lads will fancy themselves to make the difference today.
The bottom line
On paper, this looks like a comfortable home win. La Real are fresher, better placed in the table, and playing at a ground where they’ve been excellent recently. Oviedo, for all their pluck — and they did beat Real in the reverse fixture — are short on numbers and short on confidence right now. Matarazzo’s men should have too much.