The Matchday 21 clash in La Liga between Rayo Vallecano and Girona will take place on January 26 at the Campo de Vallecas Stadium in Madrid. Rayo Vallecano vs. Girona: prediction and betting odds, statistics.
Referee: Isidro Diaz de Mera Escuderos (Spain)
Matches – 9 (La Liga, 2024/25);
Yellow cards shown (including second yellows) – 45;
Average yellow cards per match – 5;
Red cards shown – 0;
Average fouls per match – 25;
Penalties – 22%.
Predicted lineups for Rayo Vallecano vs. Girona
Rayo Vallecano (4-4-2): Augusto Batalla – Florian Lejeune, Andrei Ratiu, Pep Chavarria, Abdul Mumin – Oscar Valentin, Unai Lopez, Adrian Embarba, Jorge de Frutos – Isi Palazon, Sergio Camello.
Girona (4-5-1): Paulo Gazzaniga – Ladislav Krejci, Daley Blind, David Lopez, Arnau Martinez – Yaser Asprilla, Oriol Romeu, Viktor Tsygankov, Ivan Martin, Bryan Gil – Abel Ruiz.
The starting lineup for each team is based on their previous match in this tournament.
Rayo Vallecano
The Madrid side drew 1-1 away against Osasuna in the last round. This was their fourth draw in the last five La Liga matches. Overall, the team is unbeaten in six league matches, with two wins. They are currently ninth in the standings, four points behind the European competition spots.
Forward Raul de Tomas will miss the match due to injury.
- Both teams scored in Rayo Vallecano's last five league matches.
- The number "1" appeared in the final score in 12 of Rayo's last 13 La Liga games.
- At least two goals were scored in 8 of the club's last 9 home matches in La Liga.
Girona
The Catalans suffered a surprising 1-2 home defeat to Sevilla in their last league outing. Prior to that, Michel Sanchez's side secured clean-sheet victories against Valladolid (3-0) and Alaves (1-0). Girona is one place above Rayo Vallecano in the standings, leading by two points. Interestingly, last season, Girona had 21 more points after 20 rounds.
- At least three goals were scored in 6 of Girona's last 7 La Liga matches.
- The number "1" appeared in the final score in 5 of Girona's last 7 away La Liga games.
- One team won with a clean sheet in the second half in five of Girona's previous league matches.
Rayo Vallecano vs. Girona: Match Prediction
I slightly favor the hosts in this game. The club has gained momentum, becoming more stable, and interestingly, they have only lost by more than one goal once in the current La Liga season. The Madrid side is unbeaten in six consecutive league matches, having taken points from both Real Madrid and Villarreal.
Meanwhile, Girona struggles with consistent results. They have only won three away matches, all against teams from the lower half of the table. It's also noteworthy that Girona scores few goals in away La Liga matches – just 9 goals in 10 games. I believe the outcome of the upcoming match could be decided by a single mistake, or the teams might draw. Therefore, my prediction is Rayo Vallecano with a handicap (0).