La Liga preview and odds: Valencia vs Real Madrid

Published on: 02/01/2016

La Liga preview and odds: Valencia vs Real Madrid

January 03, 2016 19:30am - Estadio Mestalla

La Liga

Former Manchester United player Gary Neville and former Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez will face each other as La Liga Coaches for the first time on Sunday as Valencia welcome Real Madrid to Estadio Mestalla.

Neville searching for first league win

Since his arrival in Spain, new Head Coach Gary Neville has guided Valencia to two draws and one defeat in the league. Those results extended their winless run to five games and as a consequence, the club has slipped down to 10th place in the Spanish first division table.

Last time out, they were beaten 1-0 at Villarreal, in a game that they never looked like winning. Prior to that, they were held 2-2 at home to 14th-ranked Getafe.

Benitez defiant in face of criticism

Despite calls for his sacking from fans and media in Madrid, Rafa Benitez had insisted that he is just concentrating on doing his job in the Spanish capital. With Real Madrid president Florentino Perez also backing his man, it seems like the former Valenica chief is not going anywhere for the time being. Of course, that could all change if results do not go well for Los Blancos.

They come into this game on the back of a 3-1 win at home to Real Sociedad. Despite, the positive result, the performance still drew criticism from certain quarters who seem insistent on forcing a regime change at the club. A win at Valencia would certainly go a long way to easing some of the pressure on the Coach.

Team news

Gary Neville will have to cope without the services of Shkodran Mustafi, Jose Gaya, Enzo Perez, Zakaria, Bakkali, Sofiane Feghouli, Rodrigo and Diego Alves.

Meanwhile, Dani Carvajal and Sergio Ramos are both doubtful for the Madrid side after suffering from knocks.

Recent form (League)

Valencia: LDDDL

Real Madrid: WWLWW

Betting odds and tips

Valencia have not looked very convincing so far under Neville and may face a tough time against the attacking force of Real Madrid. With Bale, Benzema and Ronaldo all finding some form, the away side should have enough to condemn Los Che to their first home defeat in the league in over a year. The away win can be backed at 4/7 with Ladbrokes.

By Neil Morris

Published on: 02/01/2016

Any odds displayed within this preview were correct at the time of publishing (02/01/2016 16:45:04) but are subject to change.