MADRID, 26 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Real Sociedad and Rayo Vallecano face each other this Saturday at the Reale Arena, in a match in which the San Sebastian team seek to add three points and thus put pressure on Athletic Club in the fight for fifth place, while the visitors want to end their streak of two consecutive defeats, in the course of a 22nd matchday where RCD Mallorca will try to extend their sweet moment at the expense of Real Betis, after having qualified for the semifinals of the Copa del Rey.
The 'txuri-urdin' team receives the team from Vallecas (2:00 p.m.) with the aim of placing themselves, at least until the Sunday session, three points behind the fifth league place held by Athletic. Imanol Alguacil's men, who have just reached the semi-finals of the Cup after eliminating Celta, will therefore need to rediscover victory in front of their fans, as they have not won any of their last three home games, having achieved three draws.
Of course, Real has a fort at home. They have only lost one game this season at the Reale Arena, the one against FC Barcelona last November (0-1). In the rest of the events, its record has been nine wins and six draws, which consolidate it as one of the best venues in Spain. Furthermore, the 'txuri-urdin' team, which has four wins in its last five official matches, has not lost against Rayo at home since 2015.
For its part, Rayo is immersed in a results crisis in LaLiga EA Sports. Francisco Rodríguez's pupils have only added four of the last 15 possible points, a streak that has precipitated them to the second half of the qualifying table. Despite this, they still have a good margin over the relegation places, separated by eight points, although he needs to smile again if he does not want to see himself hunted.
The team from the strip, which is the fifth best visitor in the League with 15 out of 30 possible points, will look for its fifth victory away from home, having only lost to Betis, Athletic and Osasuna. Away from his audience he has cemented this dynamic with defensive solidity; With eight goals against, it is the second team that receives the least outside its home field.
Alguacil will not be able to count on the suspended Mikel Merino or the injured Kieran Tierney, Aihen Muñoz, Ander Barrenetxea and Carlos Martín. The one who will be available is the newcomer Javi Galán, who aims to start at left back, while Turrientes is the best placed to replace the aforementioned Merino in the midfield. Rayo will have to deal with the loss of Álvaro García, sent off against Las Palmas, for whom Jorge de Frutos could enter the lineup.
OPPOSING DYNAMICS IN SON MOIX
In the duel that closes the Saturday round, Mallorca and Betis meet in Son Moix (9:00 p.m.). The Vermillions arrive with sky-high morale after advancing to the cup semi-finals at the expense of Girona during the week. A state of mind that Javier Aguirre's pupils will try to prolong to move their margin above the relegation zone up to eight points.
Meanwhile, Betis, which is no longer in the top 7 of the League where it boasted since matchday 10, needs to rediscover itself to avoid losing ground with other candidates for the European zone. Victory has eluded the Verdiblancos in seven of their last games in all competitions, with the three points achieved against Granada on matchday 20 being the only oasis since December 6.
Regarding the history of matches on the island, the latest precedents favor the Andalusians, who have gone four without losing, having won three of them. The Balearic Islands have only lost one home game this season, during matchday 2 against Villarreal, and since then they have gone 10 games without losing.
The only casualty for Aguirre with respect to the last day is Pablo Maffeo, although the Mexican coach is expected to rotate the starting eleven that Girona won in the Cup. Opposite, Manuel Pellegrini continues with a long list of casualties, which is adds Marc Roca due to pneumonia; In his place, Sergi Altimira is running as the main substitute.
–PROGRAM FOR DAY 22 IN LALIGA EA SPORTS.
-Saturday 27.
Real Sociedad – Rayo Vallecano. Hernández Hernández (C.Las Palmas) 14.00.
Las Palmas – Real Madrid. Soto Grado (C.Riojano) 16.15.
Barcelona – Villarreal. Munuera Montero (C.Andaluz) 18.30.
Mallorca – Betis. Villanueva Churches (C.Gallego) 21.00.
-Domingo 28.
Celta – Girona. Melero López (C. Andaluz) 14.00.
Cádiz – Athletic. Busquets Ferrer (C.Balearic) 16.15.
Seville – Osasuna. Cuadra Fernández (C.Balearic) 18.30.
At. Madrid – Valencia. From Burgos Bengoechea (C.Vasco) 21.00.
-Monday 29.
Getafe – Granada. García Verdura (Catalan) 21.00.