Sevilla host Alaves at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán on 6 November 2026 in a Friday night La Liga fixture that pits a side chasing European qualification against one fighting to avoid the drop. Sixth with 17 points from 11 matches, Sevilla occupy the Conference League spots, while Alaves sit 11th with 12 points and seven games without a win. García Plaza needs points to consolidate sixth, Sánchez Flores needs anything to stop a seven game slide from turning into a crisis.
Luis García Plaza, appointed on 24 March 2026 to replace Matías Almeyda, faces his former club. He managed Alaves between 2022 and 2024, which gives him a detailed read on the squad's tendencies and the compact defensive structures they favour. Quique Sánchez Flores, appointed on 3 March 2026 to replace Eduardo Coudet, brings his own pragmatic philosophy to Alaves but will know that García Plaza understands exactly how to pull those structures apart.
Sevilla arrive on the back of a 3-1 defeat at Getafe on 1 November 2026, their last five league games reading L D L W L, while Alaves suffered a 6-1 thrashing at Barcelona on 31 October 2026 and have posted D L L D L across their previous five. Sevilla have won once in five and need this fixture to avoid drifting from sixth.
Sevilla must cope with several absences: Manu Bueno is suspended after his red card against Getafe, Marcão is out injured and Peque Fernández misses out with a hamstring problem. Youssouf Fofana is doubtful with a muscle issue and Isaac Romero is similarly uncertain due to knee concerns. Alaves are without Facundo Garcés through an ACL injury and Mikel Rodríguez with a knee problem, forcing Sánchez Flores to field a makeshift centre back pairing.
García Plaza has built a pragmatic home setup around Lucien Agoumé, whose league high tackle numbers let Sevilla recover the ball high and feed Stassin quickly. Fofana, when fit, supplies creativity alongside Stassin leading the line, though losing Bueno, Marcão and Peque Fernández in one go hurts the depth across the engine room and forward line. Alaves under Sánchez Flores deploy a back five designed to cut off access through the centre and push play wide but the 6-1 defeat at Barcelona showed exactly what happens when that shape gets pressed high. The absence of Garcés and Rodríguez forces even greater compactness, pinning Alaves inside their own half and handing Sevilla the set piece count. Jonny Otto anchors the defensive shape, though with two centre backs missing the structure looks stretched before kick off. If Agoumé wins the midfield battle and feeds Stassin in transition, Sevilla should create the clearer chances by some distance.
Three meetings between these sides have produced three different winners: Sevilla drew 1-1 in the February 2026 La Liga fixture, Alaves won 1-0 in the Copa del Rey in December 2025 and Sevilla prevailed 2-1 in the September 2025 league encounter.
Sevilla 2-1 Alaves. Alaves must defend set pieces without two centre backs, which is their most obvious structural vulnerability from dead balls. Even if Agoumé operates without Fofana alongside him, Sevilla have enough in the centre to control the tempo and Alaves will struggle to stay compact for ninety minutes. Boyé's pace in behind offers occasional danger but Alaves have not won in seven and have conceded thirteen goals in their last three matches. There is no structural evidence they can hold a result here.
Ryan Baldi
Football Writer
Ryan Baldi is a professional football writer with years of experience and has been featured by respected outlets such as the BBC, The Guardian, Sky Sports, DAZN, FourFourTwo, ESPN, Yahoo Sport and Football365. He has also written several books including Arsène Who?.
