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Almeria vs Valencia predictions and match preview for Sunday’s LaLiga fixture. Read on for analysis, team news and predicted lineups as two relegation rivals meet.
Date | Sunday 9th April 2023 |
Kick-Off | 18:30 (CET) |
Stadium | Power Horse Stadium |
Competition | LaLiga |
Almeria vs Valencia Preview
This is one of the standout fixtures this weekend in LaLiga as two struggling teams meet at the Power Horse Stadium. It’s 19th vs 17th heading into matchday 28 and victory would be a huge boost for either Almeria or Valencia.
It’s debatable who needs this more. The pressure is greater for a big club like Valencia, but Almeria’s failure to win away all season means they really need to be winning games like this at home. To their credit, they often have done just that when fellow bottom half sides have come calling with their most recent visitors Cadiz the only current bottom half side (at the time of writing) to avoid defeat here.
Unlike many of the clubs around them, Almeria have opted to keep faith with boss Rubi despite them sitting bottom of the form table with only 5 points from their last 8 games. That’s despite the somewhat impatient reputation their Saudi owner has when it comes to sacking coaches, but it does feel like defeat here could potentially see Turki Al-Sheikh take a leaf out of the books of Sevilla, Espanyol and Real Valladolid by seeking a new coach to oversee the relegation run-in.
Valencia also sought new direction recently but Ruben Baraja hasn’t been able to steer them clear of trouble just yet. He has delivered priceless home wins over Osasuna and Real Sociedad but a return of just 3 goals scored from his 6 games hardly inspires confidence that this Valencia side is going to ease their way to safety.
Their away record has been poor all season in truth with only opponents Almeria having picked up fewer points on the road than Los Che. Valencia have lost 9 of their 13 away games in LaLiga this term and they are crying out for someone to really put in a big performance here and emerge as a leader for what is a relatively inexperienced side with only a few exceptions.
Team News & Possible Lineups
Almeria
INJURED | Toure, Akieme |
DOUBTFUL | |
BANNED |
Possible XI: Fernando – Centelles, Babic, Ely, Pozo – Robertone, Melero, De La Hoz – Ramazani, Luis Suarez, Baptistao (4-3-3)
Coach: Rubi
Valencia
INJURED | Domenech |
DOUBTFUL | Nico Gonzalez |
BANNED |
Possible XI: Mamardashvili – Gaya, Diakhaby, Ozkacar, Foulquier – Almeida, Guillamon, Musah – Lino, Cavani, Kluivert (4-3-3)
Coach: Ruben Baraja
Score Prediction: Almeria 2-1 Valencia
This is a huge game at the bottom and with the teams level on points, it will surely be a pretty close affair. However home advantage feels like it could be the deciding factor for Almeria. They’ve taken 23 points at home this season while Valencia have just 6 on their travels and that’s a really big difference which makes the Andalusians appear the more likely victors.
PLEASE NOTE – Our LaLiga match predictions are not betting tips! No profits are guaranteed if you’re using them to bet on Spanish football. If you are gambling, do so responsibly and never stake more than you can afford to lose. BeGambleAware.
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