Matchday 19 of La Liga will see Rayo Vallecano take on Celta on January 10 at the Campo de Vallecas Stadium in Madrid. Rayo Vallecano vs. Celta: prediction and betting odds, statistics.
Referee: Guillermo Cuadra Fernández (Spain)
Matches – 8 (La Liga, 2024/25);
Yellow cards shown (including second yellows) – 41;
Average yellow cards per match – 5.1;
Red cards shown – 1;
Average fouls per match – 24;
Penalties – 25%.
Predicted lineups for Rayo Vallecano vs. Celta
Rayo Vallecano (4-2-3-1): Augusto Batalla – Florian Lejeune, Andrii Ratiu, Pep Chavarría, Aridane Hernández – Pathé Ciss, Unai López – Adrián Embarba, Álvaro García, Pathé Ciss – Randy Nteka.
Celta (3-4-3): Vicente Guaita – Marcos Alonso, Javi Rodríguez, Carl Starfelt – Óscar Mingueza, Ilaix Moriba, Sergio Carreira, Fran Beltrán – Borja Iglesias, Pablo Durán, Alfonso González.
Each team's lineup is based on their last match in this tournament.
Rayo Vallecano
The Madrid side ended last year on a positive note, extending their unbeaten run in the league to four matches. They first defeated Valencia away (1-0) and then drew three times against strong opponents. At home, Iñigo Pérez's men played to a 3-3 draw with Real Madrid and then drew away against Villarreal and Betis (both 1-1). The club is in 12th place, 7 points clear of the relegation zone.
- In their last seven La Liga matches, the team has secured only one win (3 draws and 3 losses).
- The number "1" appeared in the final scoreline of 10 of Rayo Vallecano's last 11 La Liga games.
- In 9 of their last 12 league matches, one team led 1-0 at halftime.
Celta
The Galicians played three La Liga matches in December. They defeated Mallorca and Real Sociedad 2-0 at home but lost 0-1 away to Sevilla. Celta is one spot above Rayo Vallecano, leading their opponents by two points. Notably, Claudio Giráldez's team has conceded 28 goals, with only four clubs having a worse defense.
Defender Javi Rodríguez will miss the game due to yellow card accumulation, and forward Iago Aspas is out with an injury.
- At least two goals have been scored in 7 of Celta's last 9 league matches.
- The club has not won the second half in their last eight away La Liga matches (3 draws and 5 losses).
- The Galicians have conceded at least two goals in 6 of their last 8 away La Liga games.
Rayo Vallecano vs. Celta: Match Prediction
The Madrid side has been better on the road in this championship, collecting only 9 points from 8 home games. However, they have only faltered against top-4 teams Athletic and Barcelona, and their only major slip-up was against Las Palmas (1-3). I predict that Iñigo Pérez's side will not lose this game, and I believe bookmakers are underestimating them, as they have already taken points at home from Real Madrid and Atletico (both draws) and defeated Osasuna.
Celta, on the other hand, is a distinctly home-oriented team. On the road, they have collected just 4 points from 8 matches, beating only Las Palmas and drawing with Betis. They have managed to keep a clean sheet only once away from home in this La Liga season. Additionally, Rayo Vallecano has not lost to Celta at home in their last 13 league encounters (10 wins and 3 draws).
My prediction – Rayo Vallecano with a handicap (0)
