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Rayo Vallecano logo
La Liga | Gameweek 29
Mar 19, 2022 at 8pm UK
Estadio Teresa Rivero
Atletico Madrid logo

Rayo Vallecano
0 - 1
Atletico


Suarez (30'), Comesana (42'), Trejo (65')
FT(HT: 0-0)
Koke (49')
Lodi (20'), Kondogbia (74'), Koke (78'), Oblak (81'), Savic (85')
Correa (85')

Preview: Rayo Vallecano vs. Atletico Madrid - prediction, team news, lineups

Sports Mole previews Saturday's La Liga clash between Rayo Vallecano and Atletico Madrid, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.

Atletico Madrid will be bidding to make it five La Liga victories in a row when they take on capital rivals Rayo Vallecano at Estadio de Vallecas on Saturday night.

Diego Simeone's side are currently fourth in the table, level on points with third-placed Barcelona, while Rayo sit in 13th position, eight points clear of the relegation zone.


Match preview

Rayo Vallecano's Bebe celebrates scoring their first goal with teammates on March 3, 2022© Reuters

Rayo managed to end a six-game losing run in Spain's top flight last weekend when they held Sevilla to a 1-1 draw, with the result leaving them in 13th spot in the table, eight points clear of the relegation zone.

Andoni Iraola's side were so impressive in the first half of the campaign, but they have not been victorious in Spain's top flight since the middle of December, which has seen them slide down the table in recent months.

There is seemingly enough credit in the bank for the capital side to avoid relegation, which was always the main aim this term following their promotion via the Segunda Division playoffs last term.

Rayo have not actually managed to secure back-to-back seasons at this level since 2016, while they have played Segunda Division football in four of the last six campaigns, so it would have to go down a successful campaign if they manage to finish 17th or above.

Los Franjirrojos have impressed on home soil this season, picking up 27 points from their 14 matches, but they have not beaten Atletico in La Liga since February 2013 and suffered a 2-0 loss in the reverse match at Wanda Metropolitano back in January.

Atletico Madrid's Renan Lodi celebrates scoring their first goal with Reinildo Mandava and Koke on March 15, 2022© Reuters

Atletico, meanwhile, will enter this match off the back of a 1-0 win over Manchester United in the second leg of their last-16 Champions League tie, which secured a 2-1 aggregate victory and booked their spot in the quarter-finals of the competition once again.

Simeone's side have also won their last four in the league against Osasuna, Celta Vigo, Real Betis and Cadiz to rise into fourth spot in the table, level on points with third-placed Barcelona.

Atletico are also now just five points behind second-placed Sevilla, who have allowed Real Madrid to open up a 10-point lead at the top of the table, but there is still a fascinating race for the top four, with Real Betis, Real Sociedad and Villarreal all still very much in the argument.

The Red and Whites have been unable to launch a title challenge this term, but they are certainly a team to watch in the Champions League and will, like Barcelona, be eyeing second spot in the table.

Atletico's away form in La Liga this season has been inconsistent, picking up just 21 points from their 14 matches, but they ran out 1-0 winners over Rayo on their last visit in February 2019.

Rayo Vallecano La Liga form:
  • L
  • L
  • L
  • L
  • L
  • D

Rayo Vallecano form (all competitions):
  • L
  • L
  • L
  • D
  • L
  • D

Atletico Madrid La Liga form:
  • W
  • L
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W

Atletico Madrid form (all competitions):
  • W
  • D
  • W
  • W
  • W
  • W



Team News

Atletico Madrid's Joao Felix celebrates scoring their first goal with teammates on March 10, 2022© Reuters

Rayo will again be without the services of Unai Lopez, Radamel Falcao, Martin Merquelanz and Esteban Saveljich for this weekend's contest through injury.

However, the home team will be boosted by the returns of Isi Palazon and Alvaro Garcia following suspensions, and the former is expected to return to the starting XI.

Bebe's goal against Sevilla could see the attacker retain his spot in the side, meanwhile, with Oscar Trejo and Sergi Guardiola also expected to be in the team against the champions on Saturday.

As for Atletico, Thomas Lemar, Sime Vrsaljko, Matheus Cunha and Daniel Wass will again be unavailable for selection due to injury problems.

Geoffrey Kondogbia made his return against Man United on Tuesday, though, and could now be in line for a start, while Mario Hermoso was also on the bench against the Red Devils after recovering from injury.

Simeone is unlikely to make many changes from the side that started at Old Trafford, but Yannick Carrasco, who was suspended against Ralf Rangnick's team, could come back into the team here, while Angel Correa is pushing to be involved in the final third of the field.

Rayo Vallecano possible starting lineup:
Dimitrievski; Balliu, M Suarez, Catena, F Garcia; Comesana, Valentin; Bebe, Trejo, Palazon; Guardiola

Atletico Madrid possible starting lineup:
Oblak; Savic, Gimenez, Reinildo; Llorente, Kondogbia, Herrera, Koke, Carrasco; Griezmann, Felix


SM words green background

We say: Rayo Vallecano 0-2 Atletico Madrid

Atletico are flying at the moment and will have been further boosted by their win over Man United in the Champions League. Rayo, on the other hand, are struggling for form, and we are finding it very difficult to back anything other than a routine victory for the Spanish champions this weekend.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting under 2.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Under 2.5:data



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Data Analysis

Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Atletico Madrid win with a probability of 45.77%. A win for Rayo Vallecano had a probability of 28.21% and a draw had a probability of 26%.

The most likely scoreline for an Atletico Madrid win was 0-1 with a probability of 11.27%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (9.11%) and 0-2 (8.3%). The likeliest Rayo Vallecano win was 1-0 (8.4%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.36%). The actual scoreline of 0-1 was predicted with an 11.3% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted a 0-1 win for Atletico Madrid in this match and our team at Sports Mole correctly predicted the win for Atletico Madrid.


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Game History

How you voted: Rayo Vallecano vs Atletico

Rayo Vallecano
11.2%
Draw
7.5%
Atletico Madrid
81.3%
107
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Atletico Madrid's Matheus Cunha celebrates scoring their first goal with Yannick Carrasco on January 22, 2022
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rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Barcelona13110240122833
2Real Madrid1283125111427
3Atletico MadridAtletico137511971226
4Villarreal127322319424
5Osasuna136341720-321
6Athletic Bilbao135531913620
7Real BetisBetis135531412220
8Real Sociedad135351110118
9Mallorca135351010018
10GironaGirona135351617-118
11Celta Vigo135262022-217
12Rayo Vallecano124441313016
13Sevilla134361218-615
14Leganes133551316-314
15AlavesAlaves134181422-813
16Las PalmasLas Palmas133371622-612
17Getafe13175811-310
18Espanyol123181122-1110
19Real ValladolidValladolid132381025-159
20Valencia11146817-97


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