VALENCIA RAYO | Rayo missed Falcao’s goal

Rayo de Mestalla would leave happy with their game, but lamenting about the lost opportunity; Valencia was sure annoyed with himself, for letting himself be carried away in a game that he had under control until the break. Carlos Soler put Valencia ahead with a penalty and Isi combined Rayo’s faith with his goal. To those who the point does not give them to approach Europe; it allows the Vallecanos to continue in their cloud. His football is worth it and his 24 points corroborate it.

Valencia took the lead thanks to a controversial penalty from start to finish, controversial with or without VAR. Hernández Hernández whistled him in the first instance. The referee saw Saveljich kick Hugo de Duro in his eagerness to clear. But his assistant raised the flag and the penalty was – momentarily – canceled for offside. The action then moved from the lawn to the VOR room. There González González first drew the lines, validating Hugo Duro’s position with a nail. Or less. So they went on to review the lack of the central and the VAR referee the action generated doubts. Enough to advise Hernández Hernández to go check it on the screen. And there it was. And he returned as it all began, whistling a penalty that Carlos Soler transformed.

That goal unbalanced a game that until halftime it was black and white and after passing through the changing rooms it was dyed sky blue, which is how Rayo dressed in Mestalla. With a first part with the areas closed (only two shots), but with a second in which they were wide open (with 14 shots, eight from Vallecanoes).

The personality of Rayo de Iraola goes beyond playing in Vallecas or away, whether or not Falcao was available, who traveled to Valencia to stay in the box. He did not even acknowledge the loss of his Trejo, his best player to date. In truth, the distribution of points was little known to the visitors, that they had the victory in sight three times. On Álvaro García’s feet (Hélder saved her), Andrés’s (he made a mess) and in the last supiro on Bebe’s (Diakhaby avoided it).

The Rayo tie had come after a series of gestures delicatessen. In fact, the least beautiful was the most valuable: Isi’s auction. But before that there was a break from Balliu to Hugo Duro, an unnatural spur from Catena and a superb stop from Cillesen. And in the rejection, Isi’s point-blank shot and goal.

Valencia lacked constancy, balance. Bordalás’s decision to replace Guedes with Maxi Gómez would have some reason in the coach’s notebook, although the result of his decision was a less vertical, more predictable Valencia. Quite the opposite of Rayo, where a player who came out, a chance he had. It is true that Dimitrievski saved a goal from Hugo Duro that Mestalla was already singing, although sometimes in the final stretch Rayo won. But the Vallecanos forgave in the definition. Oh if Falcao had been on the lawn.