Valencia will be aiming to stretch their unbeaten run in all competitions to five matches when they welcome Granada in Spain's top flight on Sunday afternoon.
Los Che will enter the contest off the back of a 2-0 victory over UD Logrones in the Copa del Rey, while Granada also progressed in the cup competition last time out with a 3-0 success at Arosa.
Match preview
© Reuters
Valencia finished 16th in La Liga last season, their worst final spot in Spain's top flight since being relegated at the end of the 1985-86 campaign, so there was plenty of room for improvement this term.
Taking their struggles last season into consideration, it has been a solid start to this campaign, picking up 15 points from their opening 11 matches to sit ninth in the table, just four points behind fifth-placed Real Sociedad.
The top four, which includes Girona, are starting to break clear, but Valencia will potentially have their eyes on a top-six spot this term, and the team will bring a four-game unbeaten run into this fixture, picking up five points from their last three league games with Mallorca, Cadiz and Athletic Bilbao.
Ruben Baraja's side were so close to beating Athletic at San Mames in the league last weekend, leading 2-1 until the very final moments, when Alex Berenguer levelled for the Basque side.
Valencia will enter this match off the back of a victory, though, beating UD Logrones in the Copa del Rey on Thursday evening to progress into the second round of the competition.
© Reuters
Granada were also too strong for their Copa del Rey opponents on Thursday, recording a 3-0 success over Arosa to advance to the second round, but it is more than two months since their last league success.
Indeed, Paco Lopez's side have not been victorious in Spain's top flight since beating Mallorca 3-2 on August 26, with the team currently on an eight-game winless run in La Liga.
Granada did draw three straight matches against Real Betis, Almeria and Barcelona ahead of the October international break, but they have lost their last two in the league to Osasuna and Villarreal.
The Andalusian outfit are currently 19th in the table, boasting just six points from their opening 11 matches, while they have conceded 28 times this season, which is the second-worst defensive record behind Almeria, with the basement outfit already shipping 31 goals.
Valencia were 3-1 winners when the two sides locked horns in the corresponding match during the 2021-22 campaign, with Granada's last success in this fixture proving to be a 2-1 victory in December 2020.
Team News
© Reuters
Valencia will again be without the services of Andre Almeida, Mouctar Diakhaby, Jesus Vazquez, Alberto Mari and Cenk Ozkacar for this weekend's contest with Granada.
Meanwhile, Hugo Duro, who has five league goals to his name this season, picked up a shoulder injury against Athletic last weekend, which could rule him out until January.
Duro's absence is likely to open the door for Roman Yaremchuk to feature in an attacking area, with the Ukrainian given the nod through the middle against UD Logrones in the Copa del Rey.
Granada, meanwhile, will welcome Gerard Gumbau and Lucas Boye back into their squad following suspensions, and both players are set to return to the XI.
Boye will be back to lead the line, which could mean that Myrto Uzuni, who netted his fourth league goal of the season against Villarreal, moves into a wide area.
Granada are still missing three players through injury, though, with Jesus Vallejo, Miguel Angel Rubio and Raul Fernandez remaining unavailable for selection.
Valencia possible starting lineup:
Mamardashvili; Correia, Mosquera, Paulista, Gaya; Perez, Pepelu, Guerra, Amallah; D Lopez, Yaremchuk
Granada possible starting lineup:
Ferreira; R Sanchez, Miquel, Torrente, Neva; Villar, Gumbau; Puertas, Zaragoza, Uzuni; Boye
We say: Valencia 2-1 Granada
Granada have not had too many problems finding the back of the net this season, scoring 17 times, with only six sides scoring more in La Liga in 2023-24. Lopez's side are conceding at an alarming rate, though, and we are expecting an in-form Valencia to shade this contest.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Matt Law
