Preview: Rayo Vallecano vs Valencia - prediction, team news, lineups

Valencia will be aiming to make it successive wins in Spain's top flight when they continue their campaign away to Rayo Vallecano on Monday night.

Los Che are currently 16th in the La Liga table, picking up 13 points from their first 13 matches of the campaign, while Rayo are 13th, with the capital outfit boasting 16 points from their opening 13 games of the 2025-26 season.

Match preview

Rayo have a record of four wins, four draws and five defeats from their 13 La Liga matches this season, with 16 points leaving them in 13th spot in the division.

Los Franjirrojos will enter this match off the back of a 2-1 defeat to Slovan Bratislava in the Conference League, while they have drawn their last two in Spain's top flight against Real Madrid and Real Oviedo.

Inigo Perez's side finished eighth in La Liga last term, which allowed them to qualify for the Conference League, but it remains to be seen whether they can push for a similar spot this term due to the quality of the teams in that area of the division.

Rayo have only managed to win one of their five home league matches this season, drawing three times, while they have only scored three and conceded three in their own stadium this term, so it has not been a source of great entertainment.

Los Franjirrojos have only won 10 of their previous 50 matches against Valencia, and it was 1-1 when the two teams locked horns in the corresponding game last term.

Valencia have only actually won one of their last nine matches against Rayo, which was a 1-0 success in Madrid in December 2023.

Five of the last eight league meetings between the two sides have actually finished level, but Valencia will be looking to make it back-to-back victories in Spain's top flight on Monday, having recorded a 1-0 success over Levante last time out.

Carlos Corberan's side have a record of three wins, four draws and six defeats from their 13 league matches this season, with 13 points leaving them 16th in the table.

Los Che have struggled on their travels this term, boasting a record of two draws and four defeats from six games, with two points proving to be the second-worst away record.

Valencia finished 12th in Spain's top flight last season, so there is plenty of room for improvement this term, but they have struggled for consistency in the opening months of the 2025-26 campaign.

Rayo Vallecano La Liga form:

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Rayo Vallecano form (all competitions):

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Valencia La Liga form:

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Valencia form (all competitions):

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Team News

Rayo will be without the services of two players through suspension on Monday, with Pathe Ciss and Isi Palazon unavailable for selection due to bans.

Meanwhile, Abdul Mumin, Diego Mendez, Pedro Diaz and Oscar Trejo are out of the game due to injury problems; Randy Nteka and Ivan Balliu also need to be assessed, so the hosts will be missing a host of important players.

Jorge de Frutos and Alemao are set to feature in the final third of the field on Monday night, while there will also be a spot in a wide area for Alvaro Garcia.

As for Valencia, Mouctar Diakhaby is definitely out of the match due to a hamstring injury, while Largie Ramazani is a major doubt.

Hugo Duro has scored five times in 14 appearances this season, and the 26-year-old will again feature in the final third of the field, while Arnaut Danjuma and Diego Lopez are also set to operate in the attacking areas.

Javi Guerra should feature alongside Pepelu in the middle of midfield, while the experienced Jose Gaya is in line to make his 388th appearance for the club.

Rayo Vallecano possible starting lineup:

Batalla; Ratiu, Lejeune, Mendy, Chavarria; Perez, Valentin, Lopez, Garcia; De Frutos, Alemao

Valencia possible starting lineup:

Agirrezabala; Correia, Tarrega, Copete, Gaya; Guerra, Pepelu; Lopez, Almeida, Danjuma; Duro

We say: Rayo Vallecano 1-1 Valencia

It has been difficult to separate these two teams of late, while no side has won by more than one goal in this fixture since April 2019. As a result, we are expecting a very tight game on Monday, with the points likely to be shared in a low-scoring draw.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.