The 22nd round match of the La Liga between Real Madrid and Rayo Vallecano will take place on 1 february at Santiago Bernabéu stadium. Real Madrid vs Rayo Vallecano: prediction, betting odds and statistics.
Real Madrid
Real Madrid continue the hard fight for first place in the table. In the previous round the home side recorded an away victory over Villarreal (2:0), bringing the home side a fifth consecutive Primera win – the club has not had a run like this since august-september. Real Madrid remain in second place, but the gap to Barcelona is minimal, so leadership could return at any moment. Note that in the current league season the home side have won 9 of 10 past matches at their own ground. The home side also remain one of the most reliable clubs in the La Liga, having conceded 17 goals in 21 rounds overall – this is the best figure alongside Atletico Madrid.
- The team scored in 22 of its last 23 home matches in the Primera.
- The club's uncompromising home run in this competition lasts 18 matches (16 wins, 2 losses).
- In the current championship the team has scored 45 goals in total, only Barcelona (57) have more.
Potential Real Madrid Lineup (4-3-3)*
Thibaut Courtois – Raul Asensio, Din Heisen, Federico Valverde, Alvaro Carreras – Eduardo Camavinga, Arda Guler, Jude Bellingham – Vinicius Junior, Franco Mastantuono, Kylian Mbappé.
Main midfielder Aurelien Tchouaméni has served his suspension. Defenders Trent Alexander-Arnold, Antonio Rüdiger, Ferland Mendy and Eder Militao will miss the match due to injuries.
Rayo Vallecano
Rayo Vallecano lost to Osasuna a week ago due to two goals conceded in the final stages (1:3). Thus the away team suffered back-to-back La Liga defeats for the first time since september. It must be said that the visitors are generally going through a prolonged downturn: across the last 11 rounds the visitors have only 1 win and 8 points, fewer only than Oviedo (6). Until recently the club was midtable, but now it has fallen to 16th place. The main cause for concern is that Rayo Vallecano sit one point above the relegation zone.
- In the current Primera season the visitors have scored 17 goals in total, fewer only than Getafe (16) and Oviedo (11).
- The club's away winless run in this competition stretches to 5 matches (1 draw, 4 losses).
- At least one team failed to score in 7 of Rayo Vallecano's previous away games in the La Liga.
Potential Rayo Vallecano Lineup (4-2-3-1)*
Augusto Batalla – Alfonso Espino, Florian Lejeune, Pate Siss, Pep Chavarria – Pedro Diaz, Oscar Valentin – Isi Palason, Carlos Martin, Alvaro Garcia – Jorge De Frutos.
The suspension of defender Nobel Mendy has ended. The participation of defender Abdul Mumin and midfielder Unai Lopez is in question.
Real Madrid vs Rayo Vallecano: Match Prediction
Real Madrid have not dropped points in five La Liga games in a row, but it is evident the team is still far from its maximum. Although the home side do not face serious problems, the club usually beat opponents by a margin of 1 or 2 goals. Thus in Real Madrid's last six league matches we have seen only one large victory. Looking at the statistics at home, across the whole current league season the team have routed opponents in only 2 of the last 10 matches.
Rayo Vallecano are in a prolonged slump, but even during such a period the visitors try to withstand pressure and avoid collapsing in poor matches. The visitors have not lost in 6 of their last 10 Primera matches (1 win, 5 draws), and there were only 2 heavy defeats in that stretch. Equally important is that the club has not lost by a large margin in 12 head-to-head La Liga meetings with Real Madrid.
Prediction: Rayo Vallecano (+2.5)
* For each team the starting lineup shown is from its previous match in this competition.
