Rayo Vallecano - Almeria predictions and free betting tips [05/05/2024]

On Sunday, May 5th, in the 34th round of the Spanish Primera, "Rayo Vallecano" will host "Almeria" at its home field. The hosts are in the 15th place in the league table and are eight points above the relegation zone, while the stripes are at the very bottom and are already preparing for their return to Segunda.

Projected Lineups

"Rayo Vallecano": Dimitrievski; Ratiu, Mumin, Lejeune, Chavarria; Valentin, Crespo; Palazon, A Garcia, De Frutos; Camello.
"Almeria": Maximiano; Pubill, Montes, Chumi, Langa; E Gonzalez, Lopy; Baptistao, Arribas, Embarba; Lozano.

Stadium

The match will be held in Madrid at the Campo de Vallecas stadium.

"Rayo Vallecano"

This season, "Rayo Vallecano" is deeply disappointing its fans and has yet to secure a ticket to the premier league. However, in 15th place in the league table, it's hard to see how the Madrid side could drop further, especially since they remained unbeaten in all four recent rounds, securing 2 confident victories — over "Betis" (2:0) and "Osasuna" (2:1); at the same time, the Madrileños drew two goalless ties with "Getafe" (0:0) and "Celta" (0:0). Nevertheless, last weekend the hosts were no match for "Villarreal" at Ceramica (a crushing defeat 3:0).

The current season brought pronounced attacking problems for Inigo Perez's charges: the team has only 27 goals in 33 matches, - even the sinking "Almeria" (32) has better figures. Meanwhile, "los franjirrojos" have the second-worst home record in the division, having earned only 17 points in 16 home matches and registered only three victories. 

"Almeria"

Last placed and already officially relegated from Primera "Almeria" has only won one match in La Liga this season when it prevailed over "Las Palmas" (0:1) in the middle of March. The rest of the campaign saw the stripes draw and suffer defeats, gaining a paltry 14 points in total. Last weekend, the team paid dearly against "Getafe", finishing the match with ten men (1:3) following a previous defeat from "Villarreal" (1:2), which also resulted in a removal.

Greenwood and Losano scored in the first half, however, after the halftime break, "azulones" took their due: the English winger completed a brace, with Jaime Mata added one more goal. Last season, "Almeria" finished 17th in La Liga, and after their last relegation from the premier league in 2015, it was hard for the club to climb up from Segunda, managing to do so only 8 years later. Curiously, the visitors are third from the bottom in total away points: 6 in 16 away fixtures, 16 goals scored, 34 conceded. 

Head-to-head encounters

"La Union" lost their last two matches against "Rayo" in La Liga, including a 0:2 fiasco at the start of this season.

Prediction for "Rayo Vallecano" - "Almeria" match

"Rayo Vallecano" is likely to face one of the poorest sides in the top 5 European leagues tonight. A win will allow the hosts to formally secure their prime league status, especially as the Madrileños are currently in good form: they are on a five-match unbeaten run at home, including victories over "Osasuna" (2:1) and "Betis" (2:0). What with all playing woes, the visitors are also weakened by personnel losses, hence I bet on "Rayo" triumph.

Prediction for total match goals

"Almeria" consistently concedes more than two goals per game in the current season, and the home turf support will only make the Madrileños more resolute. I bet on the hosts' individual total over 1.5 goals.

Corner kicks prediction

"Rayo" is in good form, has plenty of tournament motivation, and will play in front of native spectators - all signs point to the red-and-whites' victory in the corners department.

Yellow cards prediction

The hosts average 2.8 yellow cards per match, while the guests - 2.4. I'm confidently betting on the total number of bookings over 4.5.

Score prediction

I'll place a bet on a specific 2:0 score in favour of "Rayo Vallecano".