Valencia vs Real Madrid Prediction: BTTS a good shot at even money

La Liga returns to action this Friday night after a brief hiatus between Christmas and New Year with a big game for the current title favourites, who go on the road to take on relegation-threatened opposition. Kick-off is at 20:00 and the action will be broadcast live on Premier Sports 2 in the UK.

Our Spanish-based football expert Mark Sochon previews the action and picks out his two Best Bets for the game as he gives us all the team-news, background and of course, his all-important Valencia vs Real Madrid Predictions...

*You can check out all of the Football Odds we offer over at betfred.com

The first match of 2025 in La Liga takes place on Friday, with Real Madrid travelling to Mestalla for a rearranged fixture against struggling Valencia.  

Both sides have been forced to cut short their winter breaks to squeeze this game in, with Los Blancos needing just a point to take top spot from city rivals Atlético. 

This is not a fixture they have tended to enjoy in recent years though. Despite their overall struggles, Valencia have frequently risen to the challenge at home to Real Madrid, losing just one of the last five league meetings at Mestalla. 

That includes an ugly affair in May 2023 when Los Che won 1-0 to edge towards safety in a game overshadowed by the shocking racist abuse suffered by Vinícius Júnior. 

Two seasons on, Valencia are very much in the thick of another relegation scrap. Having won just two of their opening 17 games, they find themselves only off the bottom on goal difference. Even a surprise victory here wouldn't lift them out of the relegation zone. 

They needed a 98th minute strike from Dani Gómez to rescue a point against Alavés in their most recent match, but a 2-2 home draw was not enough to save Rubén Baraja who was sacked following that game. 

The deeply unpopular Valencia board has since turned to West Brom boss Carlos Corberán, with the 41-year-old set to take charge of his first match here.  

Corberán, who is from the Valencian region, inherits a team that is struggling to score goals, with only Real Valladolid and Getafe netting fewer in La Liga this term. January may serve up some limited opportunities to strengthen the squad, but this is by no means a big-spending club, so the new man will largely need to work with what he has. 

It's clearly a tough first assignment for Corberán. Real Madrid haven't played for 12 days, so they should be fresher than has been the case at times this season, and the visitors ought to have all of their big hitters available. 

Carlo Ancelotti's side have won four of their last five in all competitions, and will be the firm favourites to win La Liga again should they win this game. That's as much a reflection on Barcelona's recent collapse as anything, but followers of Los Blancos will be feeling pretty good about their side's chances of picking up more silverware this term. 

After relatively slow starts to the campaign, Jude Bellingham and Kylian Mbappé have both hit form in recent weeks. Mbappé has scored in each of his last four matches, with clear signs that he is now looking more confident in front of goal, while Bellingham had netted in six straight league games, prior to the 4-2 win over Sevilla last time out. 

Defensively though, there is still plenty for Ancelotti to be concerned by. Excluding the 3-0 Intercontinental Cup win over Pachuca in December, Real Madrid have conceded at least twice in each of their last three matches. 

Aurélien Tchouaméni has slotted into central defence alongside Antonio Rüdiger, but the lack of depth across the backline is striking and Valencia may feel as though they can have some joy attacking down the flanks in this game, with right-back one clear problem position for the defending champions. 

Team News: 

Corberán's bid to make a winning start as Valencia boss is made all the tougher by some significant selection problems. Key midfielder Pepelu is suspended, while captain  

José Gayà and goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili are major injury doubts. 

Rafa Mir, Thierry Correia and Fran Pérez are also sidelined through injury. It looks as though Corberán may set up with a 4-2-3-1 system in his first game, with Hugo Duro leading the line. 

As for the visitors, long-term injury absentees David Alaba, Dani Carvajal and Éder Militão are the only players expected to be missing. 

Vinícius will return, having been unavailable against Sevilla last time out. Ancelotti used Eduardo Camavinga at left-back in that game, but the Frenchman could return to a more familiar midfield role here. 

Valencia vs Real Madrid Odds

Real Madrid are the 4/11 favourites to make a winning start to 2025. The Draw is on offer at 4/1, while you can back Valencia to win their first match under Corberán at 15/2. 

You can get odds of 4/6 for Over 2.5 goals, while Over 3.5 goals is priced at 7/4. Meanwhile, Los Blancos are available at 11/10 to score in both halves. You can also back Real Madrid to score over 2.5 goals in the game at 13/8, while the visitors are priced at 21/20 with a -1.00 Handicap.  

Alternatively, you can back Valencia or Draw at 2/1 in the Double Chance market, while Los Che are priced at 11/4 to win either half. 

Mbappé is available at 9/10 to continue his current hot streak in front of goal and score anytime in this match. You can also back the former PSG striker to score first at 3/1, while he's on offer at 9/2 to score two or more goals. 

Vinícius is available at 7/5 to score anytime at Mestalla, while Bellingham is priced at 11/5 to get on the scoresheet. From a home perspective, Hugo Duro is likely to be the main goal threat, with the Valencia striker priced at 16/5 to score anytime against the club he briefly represented earlier in his career. 

Bet 1 - Both teams to score @ 1/1 

While this may be a limited Valencia side, there is always a sense of occasion whenever Real Madrid visit Mestalla, and the home players have tended to respond well to their supporters, who always create a big atmosphere for this game. 

With a new coach at the helm, that's even more likely to be the case. While Corberán doesn't exactly arrive with a reputation for being a risk taker, he will surely at least look for his side to show some attacking intent in this game against a Real Madrid defence that has showcased some genuine vulnerabilities over the past month. 

Valencia's average of 1.50 goals per home game is respectable for a team in their position, and odds of 1/1 for Both teams to score look appealing, especially given Real Madrid's last two league matches have served up 4-2 and 3-3 scorelines. 

Bet 2 - Real Madrid over 1.5 goals & Kylian Mbappé 2+ shots on target @ 11/10 

These sides played out an entertaining 2-2 draw in this fixture last season and Real Madrid will fancy they can get amongst the goals again here. Los Blancos have netted three or more in each of their last five matches in all competitions, which appears to be a sign that things are starting to click a bit better in the final third. 

Mbappé's improvement has been key to that. The summer signing has had at least two shots on target in each of his last five La Liga appearances. His movement has largely been good, and he ought to get into lots of shooting positions again in this game. 

With the visitors looking lively in the final third, I'm using the Bet Builder to back Real Madrid over 1.5 goals and Kylian Mbappé 2+ shots on target at 11/10.

Mark Sochon primarily covers Spanish Football for us at Betfred Insights. You can check out Mark's La Liga Betting Tips along with those from the rest of the Betfred Insights Spanish Football writers on our La Liga home page...