Rayo Vallecano vs Sevilla Prediction: Sevillistas could claim vital points

La Liga action on Monday night sees mid-table Rayo Vallecano host surprise strugglers Sevilla, who are in real danger of relegation from the Spanish top flight for the first time since 2000.

Vallecano almost grabbed a point at Atletico Madrid last time out before a 90th-minute winner from Memphis Depay crushed the hearts of Los Franjirrojos, leaving the side firmly in mid-table obscurity.

Meanwhile, Sevilla picked up a point at home at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan against Osasuna, which helped Quique Sanchez Flores’s men stay out of the bottom three, albeit only on goal difference.

Team News

Vallecano will be missing manager Francisco Rodriguez from the sidelines after he was sent off against Atletico Madrid, and he joins a handful of playing absentees for Monday night’s contest.

Los Franjirrojos will be without Diego Mendez as he recovers from a muscular problem, while Bebe has only just returned from international duty after Cape Verde’s penalty-shootout elimination from the Africa Cup of Nations and is a doubt to feature.

However, there may be a return in the centre in the form of Unai Lopez after he served his suspension that kept him out of the Atletico defeat.

Sevilla will have a host of absentees missing for this encounter, with Suso and veteran defender Sergio Ramos out through suspension.

Injury will also keep Nemanja Gudelj, Kike Salas and Dodi Lukebakio out of the matchday squad, while there are also doubts surrounding the fitness of Mariano Diaz and Erik Lamela.

Match Odds

Rayo Vallecano are 23/20 to win, the draw is priced up at 23/10, and Sevilla are 5/2 to claim all three points.

Double Chance: Sevilla or Draw @ 7/10

This is likely to be a nail-biting encounter in Madrid, with both sides in need of wins to end poor runs of form.

The hosts have won two of their last nine games in all competitions, but their home form is the primary reason as to why they find themselves down in 13th, with only bottom side Almeria picking up fewer points in front of their own fans than Vallecano’s eight.

That stat may play into the hands of Sevilla, who look a far cry from the side that lifted the Europa League trophy last season.

The Sevillistas have won three of their last six games on the road, although only one of these was in La Liga, although they have won four of the last seven meetings with Vallecano while losing only one of the last 16.

However, three of the last four head to heads have ended in a draw, including the reverse fixture back in October, so the double chance offers the safer option.

Under 2.5 goals @ 4/6

The Estadio de Vallecas has not been a hub for goals in recent weeks, with four of the last five matches there seeing no more than two strikes find the back of the net.

Given that Sevilla have found the back of the net more than once in just three of their 10 away matches in La Liga this season, another low-scoring encounter should therefore be expected.

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