Rayo Vallecano will host Alaves on Friday night as they aim to get back to winning ways in the Spanish top flight. Rayo Vallecano, currently 12th in the table, have lost their last two games in the league, while 10th-placed Alaves beat Valencia 1-0 prior to International Day.
Rayo Vallecano started the La Liga season well, beating Almeria and Granada 2-0 away from home, but they suffered a 7-0 defeat at home to Atletico Madrid at the end of last month. Francisco's men showed improvement against Real Betis in early September, but they ultimately lost 1-0, and the six points they have amassed in four matches leaves them 12th in the table.Rayo Vallecano have finished in 12th and 11th place in their two seasons back in La Liga, and will be hoping to stay there this time around, although they are hoping to move into the top half of the table. but are not looking forward to it.
Rayo Vallecano have been very active in terms of reinforcements over the summer, with their biggest signing being Jorge de Frutos, who was brought in from Levante, whilst Sergio Carmelo and Florian Lejeune are also new signings. In December 2021, Rayo Vallecano won 2-0 when they last hosted Alaves, but they lost 1-0 in their 2021-2022 comeback.
Alaves won last season's La Liga play-offs to qualify for La Liga and the Basque side are back in the competition for the first time since their relegation in 2012-2013. The Blue and Whites also picked up six points from their first four matches of the new season, but their opponents here moved up to 10th place. Alaves lost 1-0 to Cadiz in their first game of the season before beating Sevilla 4-3 in their home opener.
Luis Garcia's side then lost 1-0 at Getafe, but they got a good result in their pre-international day game as they beat Valencia 1-0, the goal coming in the sixth minute of the game, an own goal by Cinque Ozcachar.
Alaves were also very active in the summer transfer market and their biggest signing, at least in terms of transfer fee, was Spanish midfielder Antonio Blanco, who was brought in from Real Madrid.
PREDICTION: Rayo Vallecano 1-1 Deportivo Alaves This looks a very interesting game, with both teams taking six points from their four league games this season. Although Alaves have struggled in away games, they were excellent in their last game against Valencia and we expect the visitors to get a draw on Friday night.
