- Deportivo Alaves have won 3, drawn 1 and lost 1 in their last 5 LaLiga matches.
- Rayo Vallecano are unbeaten in 5 matches, winning 3 and drawing 2.
- Deportivo Alaves have won 2 of their last 3 home matches.
Relegation-battling Alaves can grind out the result
Deportivo Alaves’s form has improved markedly since Quique Sanchez Flores took over as manager in March 2026 and he has had to switch their playing style accordingly as they try to claw themselves out of the LaLiga 2025/2026 relegation zone. Alaves are now a much more compact, defensive unit, who operate with 3 centre-backs and wide-wingers, who cover the flanks and keep the wide areas condensed. They sit 18th in LaLiga 2025/2026 with 37 points from 35 matches and will be desperate for 3 points against Rayo Vallecano.
Alaves’s attacking play has been limited to situational pressing and set-pieces for the majority of the season, and the quality of their forward players has been less relevant. Antonio Martinez has been Alaves’s talisman in 2025/2026 with 12 LaLiga goals in 34 matches but he has found the net 3 times in the last 5 LaLiga matches as Alaves have beaten Barcelona 1-0 and Real Oviedo 1-0. Alaves have won 2 of their last 3 games at home, and they should be able to grind out a result on Saturday against a Rayo side who they beat 2-0 here in the Copa del Rey 2025/2026.
Rayo can disrupt Alaves’s gameplan
Inigo Perez has made Rayo into a high-tempo pressing team who are relentless with the ball and looking to win it back as quickly as possible. Rayo use their press and high intensity to overload the flanks and break opposition teams down and they have found enough consistency to occupy 10th place in the LaLiga 2025/2026 table with 43 points from 35 games. Rayo are unbeaten in their last 3 away matches, picking up 2 wins and 1 draw, but their form away from home in this LaLiga campaign has been poor with 4 wins, 3 draws and 10 losses from 17 matches, averaging just 0.82 goals per game and conceding 1.59 per game.
Rayo striker Jorge de Frutos has been a revelation in the 2025/2026 campaign, netting 10 LaLiga goals in 33 appearances, and has been their main attacking focal point, while fellow midfield forward Alexandre Zurawski has chipped in with 2 goals in their last 5 LaLiga games.
Goals likely to be scarce
This is a clash between two very different systems, a relentless pressing team and a rigid, defensive unit. Both teams will be going for the win, Alaves because of their need for points to escape the bottom 3, and Rayo because of their own continental ambitions, so expect a tense game with not much in it.
Deportivo Alaves to win at 137/100, Under 2.5 goals at 93/100 and Both Teams to Score - No at 51/50 are the selections.
