Soccer Spain LaLiga Prediction

Rayo Vallecano vs Villarreal - Match Preview

⚽ 28 May 2023 - 17:00 GMT +0

Rayo Vallecano would have had loftier ambitions than a mid-table finish when ending the 20th round of La Liga (LL) in fifth place, but a run of three wins from their following 16 matches (D5, L8) saw them collect fewer points (14) than any LL club besides basement-dwelling Elche in that period. Such a poor run comes against a backdrop of links to the soon-to-be vacant Leeds United managerial post for boss Andoni Iraola, though he will only know if his potential move has served as a negative distraction in the last few months!

Iraola’s side continued to make life hard for themselves, conceding the opening goal before the break for a third consecutive time when losing 2-1 away to Real Madrid during the week. Returning home, where they strung together three straight 2-1 LL home wins prior to losing to Espanyol by the same scoreline, appears to be their only hope of keeping alive their bid for a first top-half LL finish in a decade.

It’s an inopportune time for Rayo to come across Villarreal after they stretched their unbeaten LL run to six matches (W5, D1) following a comfortable 2-0 win at home to Cádiz. A tilt at a second UEFA Europa League title next season appears inevitable for the Yellow Submarine, who would need two wins and for Sociedad to drop at least five points if they’re to sneak into the top four at season’s end.

The visitors will know to be careful, having seen a five-game unbeaten run end with a 1-0 home loss to Rayo in late January. Whilst they come into this reverse H2H once again in strong form, Villarreal also has one of the league’s poorest records as an away favourite (W4, D3, L4) that includes failing to win away at the majority of bottom-half opposition.

📋 Players to watch: His belated return to the Rayo Vallecano side was plagued by injury and non-selection, but Raúl de Tomás has rediscovered his best with goals in three of his last four appearances. Villarreal’s Nicolas Jackson has amazingly made at least two goal contributions in four of his last six appearances (G8, A2) in a run which accounts for 75% of his career LL goal contributions!

⚡ Hot stat: All but two of the last 19 LL matches involving either club saw both teams score on the day.