La Liga: This Could Be Messi For Rayo!

Barcelona vs Rayo Vallecano

After a stunning week in the Champions League it’s back to domestic football this weekend, and we’re off to Catalonia for La Liga, Barcelona vs Rayo Vallecano.

There will be plenty of cheeky smiles at the Camp Nou as the Barca fans discuss Real Madrid’s dramatic exit from the Champions League, but now’s the time to hammer home their advantage in La Liga. Ernesto Valverde’s side won’t be worried about Los Blancos, more so Atletico who sit in second place and seven points behind the champions.

And there will be no let up when Rayo Vallecano arrives at the Camp Nou, the visitors are in a relegation scrap and on a desperate run of form. The Barcelona vs Rayo Vallecano betting odds point to a long 90 minutes for Michel’s strugglers, and when they see Lionel Messi in the tunnel they might just want to turn round and go home!

Talking Points

Is this Leo’s favourite fixture?

It can’t be far away. Lionel Messi just loves playing against Rayo Vallecano and, ominously for the visitors he has been in scintillating form recently. He tops the la Liga scoring charts with 25 goals, nine more than his strike partner Luis Suarez, and to add to that he has an impressive 11 assists. But his record against Saturday’s opponents is enough to send a shiver down the hardiest of Rayo Vallecano fans.

In nine meetings between the two sides Messi has scored 16 goals and made nine assists. In fact he has scored in all but one of those nine matches, a 0-4 away win. He didn’t score in last week’s El Clasico though, so maybe the visitors can hope he’s about to run into a dry spell.

But if he does, then Rayo has plenty more to worry about in Barca’s attacking line-up. Suarez and Messi might be joined by eight goal Ousmane Dembele and the improving Philippe Coutinho, and behind them the midfield artistry and cutting edge of Ivan Rakitic.

It’s time for Rayo to fight

After winning the Segunda Division last year Rayo has found it hard going on its return to the top flight. Defeat to Girona last week was the fifth on the bounce and that leaves Michel’s team deep in the relegation mire, though only two points from the safety mark. A win at home last week would have lifted them to 17^th and they need to turn their form round quickly.

So who are the players Michel will be looking to for a lift, if not this weekend then next?

Relegation threatened Rayo Vallecano will be hoping to get a point vs La Liga leaders Barca — Rayo Vallecano’s Jordi Amat in action with Atletico Madrid’s Antoines Griezmann

Real Madrid striker Raul de Tomas Gomez has ten goals from 22 games this season, following on from his successful season on loan at Rayo last year where he was Segunda Division second top scorer. He only has one less than Los Blancos’ top scorer Karim Benzema, having played fewer minutes, and is doing his chances of a return to the Bernabeu no harm at all.

In the meantime Rayo fans will hope he can carry on hitting the net for them. A 15 goal striker is normally enough to keep a side up, and as second top scorer in Rayo’s promotion season he knows where the net is, and has shown he can cut it at the top level.

Supply to Raul de Tomas might come from Alex Moreno who is equally comfortable on the left wing or at left back, but if Rayo is to have any chance of escaping the Camp Nou with anything, then the defenders need to play out of their skins.

Jordi Amat has been a first pick in Michel’s defence and doesn’t mess about, having collected seven yellow cards this season. But he’ll need to keep his discipline on Saturday as he’ll be without his central defensive partner, Abdoulaye Ba, who received a straight red card in defeat to Girona last week.

History

Valverde’s team comes into this game in great form, having just won back-to-back El Clasicos, and they now sit a full 12 points ahead of Los Blancos.

But with five consecutive defeats the head to head Barcelona vs Rayo Vallecano results will be little, if any, comfort to the Rayo fans. In the 25 games played since 1993, Barca has won 18 to Rayo’s three and there have been five draws. And there hasn’t been much joy for Rayo in recent years. The last six have all been wins for Barca, scoring 27 goals and conceding six.

It’s 13 games since a Rayo win in this fixture and it’s 21 games since Barca failed to score in a competitive game.

Betting Tip

	Barcelona vs Rayo Vallecano	Barcelona, Asian Handicap -2.25 @ 1.94
	March 10, 01:30(GMT+8)

With Barcelona at pre-match odds of 1.17 to win, SBOBET Asian Handicap sports betting is the only way to play this game. The draw is 6.60 and Rayo Vallecano is at a huge price of 16.00.

And I really can’t see anything other than a convincing Barca win. The visitors have some good players, but are in a wretched run of form and the Camp Nou is hardly the most likely place to turn that around.

Oh…and Messi will score.