Real Madrid will take on Rayo Vallecano on Saturday, 14 December in their final match before flying to Qatar for the Intercontinental Cup final.
Los Blancos come into the match in high spirits following their win over Atalanta in the Champions League in the week and will want to build on that domestically.
Rayo Vallecano are currently in midtable and will be keen to avoid a relegation battle this season if possible. This match represents something of a free hit for the hosts, can they take advantage?
How the bookies view it: Real Madrid are odds-on favourites
Real Madrid come into the one as red-hot favourites with the bookies which shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone given that they have won four of their last five league matches. BoyleSports have priced a Real Madrid win at 11/20 while a win for Rayo Vallecano has been priced at 4/1. The draw, which would be a good result for the hosts, has been priced at 14/5.
Recent head-to-head: Worth backing the draw?
The price of 14/5 on a draw looks very appealing when you consider the recent record between these two clubs. Last season, both clashes between Rayo Vallecano and Real Madrid finished all square and to compound matters, Carlo Ancelotti's men haven't won at the Estadio de Vallecas in either of their last two visits.
Players to watch: Bellingham continues to shine
There are signs that is all starting to click together for Real Madrid and their squad of talented superstars which is ominous for the rest of Spain and Europe.
On Wednesday night, Kylian Mbappe, Vincius Jr and Jude Bellingham all got on the scoresheet, proving that all three can succeed and thrive in the same team. The return to form of Bellingham, in particular, will please Ancelotti after the Englishman started the season sluggishly.
A combination of a Euro 2024 hangover and niggling injuries meant the former Birmingham man struggled to get going over the first few months but he has responded well of late. His strike in Italy on Wednesday was his fourth goal in four games and he has also added two assists in that same time frame.
With Mbappe likely missing this one due to injury, Bellingham could be called upon again to keep Madrid among the goals.
Predicted line-ups
Rayo Vallecano are missing two players as they prepare to welcome Real Madrid on Saturday with Pelayo Fernandez and Raul de Tomas both missing for the hosts. Real Madrid have issues of their own with Kylian Mbappe set to miss the next couple of fixtures. The Frenchman joins Ferland Mendy, Eduardo Camavinga, Eder Militao, Dani Carvajal and David Alaba in the treatment room.
Ray Vallecano: Batalla – Ratiu, Lejeune, Mumin, Chavarria – Valentin, Ciss – De Frutos, Palazon, Garcia – Nteka
Real Madrid: Courtois – Vazquez, Tchouameni, Rudiger, Garcia – Valverde, Ceballos, Bellingham – Rodrygo, Vinicius, Diaz
Anything else catch the eye?
Real Madrid have scored six goals across their last two away matches in all competitions. They are priced at 2/1 with BoyleSports to score over 2.5 goals again on Saturday.
This La Liga match between Rayo Vallecano and Real Madrid will be played on Dec 14, 2024 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Rayo Vallecano vs Real Madrid prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
