Barcelona continue their push for a top two finish as they welcome Rayo Vallecano to Camp Nou in La Liga on Sunday. The Catalans are attempting to get their campaign back on track after recent stumbles and should have too much for Rayo, who have struggled lately.
After enduring a difficult fortnight, Barcelona returned to winning ways in midweek with a 1-0 victory at Real Sociedad. They were frustrated by the hosts for much of the encounter with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s early effort proving the difference.
Having crashed out of every other competition, the task for Barcelona for the rest of the season will be fending off the likes of Sevilla and Atletico Madrid and ensuring a second-place finish. Manager Xavi will also be keen to end the campaign on a high and build some momentum ahead of next season.
Barcelona have only lost once in La Liga in 2022 and won five of their last six home matches in the league, conceding just one goal in the last four fixtures in that run.
Rayo Vallecano made a bright start on their return to La Liga and were challenging near the top end of the table early in the season and even defeated Barcelona in October. However, they fell off badly and now look set to finish in the bottom half of the table.
Andoni Iraola’s men are coming off a victory in Catalonia as they triumphed 1-0 at Espanyol in their previous La Liga fixture with Sergi Guardiola getting the goal. That was a much-needed result for Vallecano as it ended a run of 13 matches without a win.
Things have been just as difficult for Rayo Vallecano on their travels with just one win from their last 12 away matches, suffering nine defeats in that run.
How the bookies view it
The bookies have Barcelona as overwhelming favourites with a home win priced at 6/19 with SBK. An unlikely victory for Rayo Vallecano is valued at 10/1 by Coral while a draw is set at odds of 24/5 by SBK.
Head to head
Barcelona have a 20-4 advantage with four draws from 28 previous matches against Rayo Vallecano. The Catalans will be seeking some measure of revenge after suffering a 1-0 defeat in the reverse fixture back in October.
Players to watch
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored the only goal in Barcelona’s win at Real Sociedad, taking his tally to nine goals since moving to Camp Nou in January. The striker will be the one to watch and is priced at 3/4 by Unibet to score anytime.
Barcelona have defensive injuries which Rayo Vallecano will be looking to take advantage of on Sunday. Attacker Sergi Guardiola has found the net three times last four matches for the visitors and is priced at 22/5 by Unibet to get on the score sheet.
Anything else catch the eye?
Barcelona often score goals at home and with 4-0 victories over Athletic Bilbao and Osasuna among their recent results at Camp Nou, a -2 handicap could be considered at 12/5 with Paddy Power. With multiple goals expected for the Catalans, they could be backed to score in both halves at 10/11 with Coral.
Five of Aubameyang’s nine goals for Barcelona have been the opener and the striker could be backed to score first on Sunday at 13/5 with SBK.
This La Liga match between Barcelona and Rayo Vallecano will be played on Apr 24, 2022 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Barcelona vs Rayo Vallecano prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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