Rayo Vallecano vs Real Bétis Prediction - How Far Can Los Franjirrojos Go In La Liga?

Next Sunday, Rayo Vallecano will measure forces with a fragilized Real Bétis side at Campo de Fútbol de Vallecas for round 34 of Liga BBVA on a match the visitors need to win if they want to nurture their faint hopes of remaining at the Spanish football top tier next season.

Real Bétis suffered a severe and perhaps lethal blow during last weekend’s home match against their neighbours and all-time rivals of Sevilla, by losing the match 2-0. Playing with just ten men since the middle of the first half, the Béticos didn’t manage to keep up with their opponents’ game intensity and allowed for a second goal on the last minutes of the match. Real Bétis’ manager, Gabriel Calderón, who was clearly aggravated at the end of the match, blamed the referee for the derby’s outcome, and told that his side will fight bravely until the end of the season in order to avoid relegation.

Real Bétis are experiencing the worst season in their history at Liga BBVA, with already 21 defeats in 33 matches so far. The Andalusian side will have a very complicated test on their visit to Vallecas next weekend where they will face a motivated team that tends to be extremely lethal when playing at home. Real Bétis, on the other hand, have a very poor record when playing away from home this season as they have only managed to win one match from the sixteen played away from Benito Villamarín.

After a very slow start this season, Rayo Vallecano looks way more confident now as the season is quickly coming to an end. The Madrid team only lost once during their last seven matches and hasn’t lost a match at Vallecas since last February.

Paco Jémez has been doing a fantastic job with Rayo this term as he managed to inject motivation and to mentally recover a team that conceded thirteen defeats on their first nineteen matches this season. Rayo are currently at the 12th place of the table but the team’s manager has recently claimed that his side are aiming for a place among the first ten teams since they are only four points behind Espanyol, who are at the 9th place.

When both teams went head-to-head at Benito Villamarín last December, the match ended in a draw (2-2) with goals from Alberto Bueno for the visitors and Verdú and Amaya for the home side. Due to the urgent need of points from the Andalusia side, next Sunday’s match might be a close one, although it is not likely that this consistent Rayo Vallecano will sucumb to a brave but fragilized Real Bétis.

Rayo Vallecano

Stats: W-11 L-18 D-4

Recent Form - DWLWD

Real Bétis

Stats: W-5 L-21 D-7

Recent Form - LWLLL

Possible Line-ups

Rayo Vallecano (4-2-3-1) - Rubén - Arbilla - Zé Castro - Gálvez - Nacho - Trashorras - Saúl - Rochina - Bueno - Falqué - Larrivey

Real Bétis (4-4-2) - Adán - Molina - Amaya -Jordi - Chica - Nono - N’Diaye - Cedric - Vadillo - R. Castro - J. Molina

Prediction: Rayo Vallecano 2 Real Bétis 0