Today, “Osasuna” and “Rayo Vallecano” will play — two out of seven clubs that concluded the previous round of La Liga without winning any of their last six duels in the tournament. The poor form of many other teams has helped limit the damage from these winless streaks, especially for “Osasuna,” which started this round with a comfortable six-point lead over the relegation zone, despite winning only four matches in La Liga throughout the season. Home fans are particularly disappointed with the sixth season under the management of Jagoba Arrasate, especially considering that this season they have celebrated only one victory in La Liga — a 2-0 triumph over relegation contenders “Granada” in mid-October. This is also the last clean sheet for the “blue-granates” at any stadium, which must be particularly frustrating for Arrasate, given that last season they could boast the seventh-best defensive record in the league. Unavailable for the match are Pena, Mohica, and Barja, who has a muscle injury.
The very long winless streak in La Liga for “Rayo Vallecano” may come to an end, as last year they broke it in a duel with today’s opponent after eight winless games, although their success then came with a score of 2-1 in a home game. Perhaps it doesn’t matter that they have to go on the road in search of consecutive victories in head-to-head meetings for the first time since the early 1990s, especially considering that three out of four victories in La Liga this season were achieved away from home. Nevertheless, a pessimistic fan of the “giants” can be forgiven for expecting his team to stumble again, not only because of the long winless period but also due to the poor performance in the league this season against clubs starting this round in the lower half of the standings. These draws have cost them a chance to qualify for European competitions, and head coach Francisco Rodriguez admitted that he is “concerned” about their recent inability to score goals. Out of the game today is Perez, who has a strain.
