Rayo Vallecano vs Girona prediction: SPAIN: LaLiga betting tips on match 2023-11-10 13:00.
Despite being rocked by the departure of manager Andoni Iraola in the summer as he left to join Premier League side Bournemouth, Rayo Vallecano have adapted well to life under new boss Francisco Rodriguez. So much so that their impressive goalless draw away at Real Madrid last time out means they’ve accumulated the same number of points as they had after 12 rounds of their last league campaign (18).
Just two defeats all season highlights how tough Rayo have been to overcome this season, but their inability to turn more draws into wins is a key reason as to why they come into this round sat in midtable (W4, D6) and not pushing the upper echelons. Just as they did to Carlo Ancelotti’s side last time out, the hosts will now look to try and derail the LL title hopes of opponents Girona, something history suggests they can do as they boast a four-match unbeaten H2H run (W2, D2).
It won’t be that straightforward this time around for the hosts, as this Girona side sit two points clear at the top of the table, meaning they will likely represent an entirely different challenge to the team that Rayo have faced in recent years. The visitors have accumulated a stunning 21 more points than what they had at this stage of last season thanks to ten wins from their 12 LL fixtures (D1, L1). Unsurprisingly then, manager MĂchel is already a heavy favourite to scoop the division's Manager of the Year award.
Their title credentials are set to be truly tested in these coming weeks, because all ten LL wins have come against teams starting the gameweek tenth or lower, while they lost 3-0 to title rivals Real Madrid and drew 1-1 at Real Sociedad. Whatever the result, expect Girona to battle until the end, with their last three competitive wins seeing them bag the winning goals beyond the 75th minute, with two of those strikes coming in stoppage time.
Players to watch: Veteran forward Óscar Trejo is yet to open his LL account this season, yet this would be the ideal game to do so, as he looks to make up for March’s H2H meeting when he put his side 2-1 up but missed a penalty to make it 3-1 in a game that eventually finished 2-2! Girona’s Viktor Tsyhankov netted twice in that game, as well as last time out against Osasuna.
Hot stat: Girona have scored in both halves on six occasions in LL this season, only Atlético Madrid have done so more coming into the round.