Rayo Vallecano will be bidding to end a five-game winless run in Spain's top flight when they head to Alaves on Saturday evening.
The visitors have dropped to ninth spot in the La Liga table due to their recent struggles, while Alaves are 17th, level on points with 18th-placed Leganes in their battle to remain in the division.
Match preview
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Alaves finished 10th in La Liga last season, with the Basque outfit having an outstanding campaign after earning promotion from the second tier, but they are currently involved in a huge battle to stay in the division.
The Blue and Whites have a record of six wins, nine draws and 13 defeats from 28 matches this season, with a total of 27 points leaving them in 17th position in the table, level on points with 18th-placed Leganes.
Alaves have only been beaten in one of their last five league games, though, and they have picked up five points from their last three La Liga fixtures against Mallorca, Villarreal and Las Palmas during a solid run.
El Glorioso have struggled at home this season, picking up just 16 points from their 13 fixtures in front of their own supporters, while Rayo have 17 points to show from their 14 away league fixtures during the 2024-25 campaign.
Eduardo Coudet's side have struggled defensively for much of the season, conceding 42 times, but Rayo have not exactly been free-scoring, only finding the back of the net on 31 occasions in their 28 league fixtures.
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Rayo's European hopes have faded in recent weeks, with the capital outfit dropping down to ninth spot in the table, seven points behind sixth-placed Real Betis, and they are now only three points above Girona in 13th.
Los Franjirrojos have not been victorious since the start of February, losing three and drawing two of their last five league matches, including a 2-2 draw with Real Sociedad before the March international break.
Inigo Perez's side have been beaten in their last two away matches, although those losses come against Barcelona and Real Madrid, and Rayo gave an excellent account of themselves in both fixtures.
The capital team have only conceded 12 times on their travels this season, while Alaves have just 11 home goals to their name in 2024-25, so it would be a surprise if this was a high-scoring affair.
Rayo finished 17th in La Liga last season, so there has been a huge improvement this term, but it would be a disappointment if the team were unable to claim a top-10 finish considering that they were in European contention not too long ago.
Team News
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Alaves will welcome three players back into their squad this weekend following suspensions, with Antonio Blanco, Antonio Sivera and Moussa Diarra all available for selection, but Tomas Conechny remains on the sidelines.
Head coach Coudet is expected to keep faith with the majority of the players that took to the field for the first whistle against Las Palmas.
However, there could be an alternation in a wide area, with Jon Guridi likely to be rewarded with a start after his goal off the bench in the 2-2 draw with Diego Martinez's side before the international break.
As for Rayo, Florian Lejeune is out of the match through suspension, while Sergio Camello, Jonathan Montiel, Randy Nteka, Abdul Mumin, Isi Palazon and Raul de Tomas are all unavailable for selection.
Ivan Balliu could be introduced at the back due to Lejeune's absence, but it might otherwise be the same side that took to the field against Real Sociedad, with Sergi Guardiola featuring through the middle.
There is currently a host of speculation surrounding Andrei Ratiu, with the right-back believed to be a leading target for Barcelona this summer, and he will again be in the starting side for Rayo on Saturday.
Alaves possible starting lineup:
Sivera; Tenaglia, Abqar, Mourino, M Sanchez; Guridi, Jordan, Guevara, Alena; T Martinez, Martin
Rayo Vallecano possible starting lineup:
Batalla; Ratiu, Balliu, Hernandez, Chavarria; Ciss, Diaz; De Frutos, Trejo, A Garcia; Guardiola
We say: Alaves 1-1 Rayo Vallecano
We are finding it very difficult to back either with any real confidence this weekend, especially considering Rayo's squad issues - a point each would not be the worst result for either side, and we are expecting a low-scoring draw to occur on Saturday.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Matt Law
