Matchday 17 of La Liga between Rayo Vallecano and Real Madrid will take place on December 14 at the Campo de Vallecas Stadium in Madrid. Rayo Vallecano vs. Real Madrid: prediction, betting odds, and statistics.
Referee: Juan Martinez Munuera (Spain)
Matches – 8 (La Liga, 2024/25);
Yellow cards shown (including second yellows) – 37;
Average yellow cards per match – 4.6;
Red cards shown – 3;
Average fouls per match – 27;
Penalties – 25%.
Predicted lineups for Rayo Vallecano vs. Real Madrid
Rayo Vallecano (4-4-2): Augusto Batalla – Florian Lejeune, Abdul Mumin, Andrei Ratiu, Pep Chavarria – Oscar Valentin, Jorge de Frutos, Alvaro Garcia Rivera, Pathé Ciss – Randy Nteka, Isi Palazon.
Real Madrid (4-2-3-1): Thibaut Courtois – Lucas Vazquez, Raul Asensio, Aurelien Tchouameni, Antonio Rudiger – Federico Valverde, Luka Modric – Brahim Diaz, Jude Bellingham, Arda Guler – Kylian Mbappe.
The starting lineup for each team is based on their last match in this tournament.
Rayo Vallecano
The Madrid club secured a narrow 1-0 victory over Valencia in the previous round. Prior to that, the team had lost three consecutive league matches, falling to Athletic (1-2), Sevilla (0-1), and Las Palmas (1-3). Rayo Vallecano has struggled to score (with only 15 goals to their name), which has left them in 12th place in the standings.
- No more than three goals were scored in 9 of the last 10 games for the Madrid side in La Liga.
- The number "1" appeared in the final scoreline in eight of Rayo Vallecano's previous La Liga matches.
- In 6 of the club's last 7 league matches, one of the teams led 1-0 at halftime.
Real Madrid
The capital club defeated Girona 3-0 in the last round, and it was an away victory. This allowed them to overtake Barcelona in terms of points lost, as Barcelona drew their match. Currently, there is a two-point difference between the teams, with Barcelona ahead, but Real Madrid has a game in hand. Notably, in their last five league encounters, Carlo Ancelotti's side secured four wins and suffered a defeat to Athletic (1-2).
Defenders Ferland Mendy, David Alaba, Daniel Carvajal, and Eder Militao, as well as forward Vinicius Junior, will not feature in this match due to injuries.
- At least three goals have been scored in 6 of Real Madrid's last 7 La Liga games.
- One of the teams failed to score in 5 of the last 6 matches for the Madrid side in La Liga.
- The club has not conceded or lost in the first half of their last 13 league matches (7 wins with clean sheets and 6 goalless draws).
Rayo Vallecano vs. Real Madrid: Match Prediction
Real Madrid needs to catch up with Barcelona. The team cannot afford to draw against mid-table and lower-table opponents. In general, in this Madrid derby, Rayo Vallecano rarely expects to earn points: in the last 26 head-to-head meetings in La Liga, the club has lost to their illustrious opponent 21 times.
Inigo Perez's side has been weak at home this season, collecting only 8 points from seven matches. Only Valladolid has a worse home record (6 points). Real Madrid, meanwhile, is the best away team in La Liga in terms of points earned. It's also worth noting that in the last 23 away matches, the Madrid side has secured 14 wins, drawn 8 times, and lost just once.
My prediction – Real Madrid to win
