Girona vs Rayo Vallecano Lines & La Liga Betting Insights
Preview Girona’s Title Hopes Fading Fast
Rayo Snag Draw at Real Madrid
Girona’s title hopes are fading fast as the La Liga surprises of the season are on a three game winless run. They enter La Liga Matchday 26 six points behind leaders Real Madrid and Girona desperately need a win on Monday vs. Rayo Vallecano. Rayo is on an even longer winless streak than Girona, at seven games overall. They did manage to pick up a point at crosstown rivals Real Madrid last weekend, though. With both sides looking to get back on track, we’ll cover the Girona vs Rayo Vallecano lines.
Girona vs Rayo Vallecano
Location: Estadi Montilivi, Girona, Spain
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Girona vs Rayo Vallecano H2H:
These teams met last month in the Copa del Rey round of 16. Rayo Vallecano managed to pick up a 3-1 win as Cristhian Stuani scored twice. The Girona vs Rayo Vallecano lines priced Girona as -115 pre match favorites. Stuani has seven career goals vs. Rayo Vallecano as a member of Girona.
Girona also won the first La Liga meeting of the season, 2-1, and are unbeaten in their last four matches vs. Rayo Vallecano overall. Girona holds an unbeaten 3-2-0 record in La Liga matches vs. Rayo but the all-time series is quite even, at 11-10 Girona. Six matches between these two have finished in draws.
Individual Errors Hurting Girona
Needless mistakes led to all three of Athletic Club’s goals in Girona’s 3-2 loss on Monday. Girona gave the ball away in a dangerous position and Alex Berenguer put the hosts up in just the second minute. Viktor Tsygankov equalized early on in the second half but Berenguer completed his brace minutes later. Iñaki Williams doubled Athletic’s lead in the 60th minute as Girona failed to deal with a routine long ball. Eric Garcia got a goal back for Girona and they very nearly equalized in stoppage time if not for a goal line clearance.
Girona have now conceded seven goals in their last two matches. They did look dangerous in attack on Monday but they need to get back to the basics. Daley Blind’s absence in the center of defense has coincided with their defensive difficulties. Blind has missed the last couple of matches and could be out until mid March with a leg injury. David Lopez is also doubtful for Monday’s match vs. Rayo Vallecano.
Now, Girona is six points behind leaders Real Madrid and the La Liga betting odds price the Catalan club as +1200 underdogs to win the title. Girona are still the league’s highest scoring team and they’re in second place in the La Liga standings. The offensive potential is certainly still there. Striker Artem Dovbyk ranks third in La Liga, with 14 goals, while winger Savio is joint-leader, with seven assists. Note that Girona are 9-2-1 at home this season despite their three game winless run.
Rayo Struggling to Get Wins
Rayo Vallecano played their role as annoying little brother to Real Madrid quite well last Sunday. Real Madrid opened up the scoring just three minutes in when Joselu finished past Rayo keeper Stole Dimitrievski. Rayo didn’t give up and won a penalty midway through the second half. Raul de Tomas confidently slotted home and it marked his first goal of the La Liga season. Rayo successfully limited Real’s chances and the match finished level at one.
The draw ended Rayo Vallecano’s three game La Liga losing streak. Rayo Vallecano are 0-2-5 in their last seven matches, in all competitions, and haven’t won a La Liga match since January 2nd. Only Cadiz has scored fewer goals than Rayo Vallecano this season and Rayo has not been a good pick for betting on sports online. Second-leading scorer Isi Palazon is out suspended for this match. Palazon has appeared in every single one of Rayo’s La Liga games this season and has scored three goals.
Alvaro Garcia leads Rayo, with six goals, but he’s found the net just twice in his last nine games. Rayo doesn’t typically create many chances, so their best chance is to hold their opponent to one goal or fewer. When Rayo Vallecano concedes two or more goals in La Liga, they are 0-3-7 this season. They do have an eight point cushion above the relegation zone but Rayo is in 14th place.
Girona vs Rayo Vallecano Odds
This is a great opportunity for Girona to get back on track against a team that’s struggled lately. Rayo Vallecano will take some confidence from taking a point from Real Madrid but it’s not the best sign that they’ve scored in their last four matches and haven’t won any of them. Here, the Girona vs Rayo Vallecano lines price hosts Girona as -150 favorites. Rayo Vallecano are +390 underdogs and their last La Liga victory was over 50 days ago.
Bettors can back a draw at +320 odds and two of the last four games between these teams have finished all square. Girona have also scored 11 goals in their last four matches vs. Rayo and will be looking to get on the scoresheet multiple times here. Girona -0.5, -1 sits at -125 odds, while Rayo Vallecano +0.5, +1 comes in at +105.
Incredibly, Girona is 12-1-0 vs. teams in La Liga’s bottom half this season. Girona over 1.5 goals is priced at -155 odds and they’re a good bet to get on the scoresheet. Both over and under 2.5, 3 goals show -110 odds for Monday’s match as both sides look to get back on track.
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