Real Sociedad will host fellow underperforming side Rayo Vallecano for the round 8 of this term’s La Liga run. So far both teams are relegation bound, sitting at 19 and 17 positions respectively after seven games.
Sociedad’s performance has been deteriorating since the departure of former head coach Imanol Alguacil whose successor has had a very poor debut season so far. They have now repeated their bad record of just five points in their first seven matches from last season as they lost to Barcelona last weekend after taking the lead.
They are optimistic going into this game, that they might pick up a point, possibl all three with the momentum garnered from their 1-0 win over Mallorca and their 2-2 draw with Espanyol in recent outing such as this.
Inversely, Rayo who just basked in a 2-0 victory from their game against Macedonia side Shkëndija on Thursday will look to translate that energy and result into today’s game, thus ending their six-game winless run in the La Liga. Their 3-1 win against Girona in the opening game of this season remains their only taste of victory.
Head-to-Head, Lineups and Injuries
This matchup has always been a tough one for both sides in recent years, with six draws out of the last ten in the La Liga, while Sociedad have won three of the remaining four.
Sociedad will sustain their 4-4-2 formation with Remiro, Gomez, Caleta-Car, Zubeldia, Odriozola, Barrenetxea, Gorrotxategi, Mendez, Kubo, Oyarzabal and Soler. While Elustondo, Oskarsson and Ruperez will miss out due to injuries and Martin will be off on International duty.
Rayo will go with the same formation with a first XI consisting of Baralla, Ratiu, Lejeune, Ciss, Chavarria, Palazan, Diaz, Valentin, Garcia, de Frutos and Alemao. Luis Felipe, Mumin, and Nteka will miss the game due to injuries while Camello is out on Red card.
Home advantage may deliver Sociedad but the game remains open to both sides as Rayo boasts of a good away record so far.
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