Alaves have been a surprise package in La Liga this season. The club finished 14th in 2017-18, but have turned things around under manager Abelardo Fernandez.
The former Alaves player has led the team to fifth in the table, just one point off of a Champions League place. Alaves could spoil the top four party for one of the big names in La Liga, but they must continue to win to reach the Champions League places
The Basque Country club will host Rayo Vallecano on Monday night. Rayo are 18th in La Liga, one point from relegation safety. The club has been on a roll in its last four matches. Rayo have won three and drawn one game in that timeframe. Their three recent wins were only their third, fourth, and fifth victories of the season. Wins have been difficult to come by as Rayo have allowed the league’s second most goals (36). Scoring hasn’t been too difficult for Rayo as they have tallied 24 goals, which is 10th best in La Liga.
Just two of Rayo Vallecano’s five wins have come on the road. They have posted a –7-goal difference on their travels with a league-low five goals scored away from home. At one point, Rayo lost five straight away fixtures. Alaves, on the other hand, have recorded 19 points from 27 possible at home. They have turned their home ground into a fortress allowing the third fewest goals (six). Despite being unable to find the back of the net with regularity at home, Alaves is still +5 in goal difference at the Stadio Mendizorrotza.
The two La Liga rivals haven’t met often in recent years. Their latest La Liga encounter was in September. Alaves won 5-1 as Rayo’s Abdoulaye Ba received a first half red card. Three of Alaves’ goals came after Ba’s sending off.
Deportivo Alavés have won three of the last six meetings between the two clubs dating back to 2003. Four of those six games were played in the Segunda. Meanwhile, Rayo won two of those games. The last two fixtures between Alaves and Rayo, which came nine years apart, featured two red cards. Rayo players were sent off on both occasions.
Making Rayo’s trip to the Basque Country even more difficult is the fact that Alaves are undefeated in their last 10 La Liga home matches. Alaves have scored over 2.5 goals in just one game this term. That was their 5-1 win over Rayo. The Basque Country team will pick up another big victory and put another 2.5 goals past Rayo on Monday night.