Valencia v Real Sociedad – Betting Preview
Valencia Summary
It was not the managerial debut that former Valencia player Ruben Baraja wanted, going down 1-0 to Getafe on Monday night. The result saw Getafe move up above them and send Valencia another place down the league, now in a woeful-looking 19th spot.
The form and confidence are on the floor now at Valencia but being at home, this is a big chance for a reprieve for the players as the fans love Baraja and will try to make it a positive atmosphere.
How long the demanding supporters stay positive if they are not playing well however is highly dubious.
They have lost their last five matches including Bilbao, Valladolid, Real Madrid, Girona, and most recently Getafe.
Rubén Baraja did make the team play more on the front foot and there were some positive signs despite the loss on Monday.
Team news however provides more negatives as several more players dropped out of training midweek and are not expected to be available.
The most important of those is attacking left-back Jose Gaya, a key player and one of the better ones this season. He is also seen as an important vocal player in the dressing room. Toni Lato will replace him, a good attacking player but not as good defensively. Also, important for a team so down on its luck, Lato does not have the same leadership skills.
Thierry Correia suffered a new setback and is out, but centre defence is an area they are quite well stocked, Gabriel and Diakhaby start.
Would be number one Jaume Domenech remains out long term while Nico Gonzalez and Edinson Cavani are missing with knocks.
Real Sociedad Summary
Real Sociedad is enjoying a fantastic season so far but there is a couple of warning signs that they are on the decline, with just one win from their last four games. In this time, they have lost the gap they had over Atletico in 4th place, with the Capital club now just 2 points off their tail.
The Basques see the draw last weekend to Celta Vigo as a big setback. However, this weekend is a big chance to pull away once more, knowing that Atletico faces Real Madrid away on the same day they play Valencia.
And with some easy-looking games on paper ahead such as Cadiz, Elche, and Mallorca, march could be a good month for them.
The target is the top four and managing the pressure of holding 3rd spot in the La Liga 2022/23 division for as long as possible.
Looking at team news which is slowly but surely improving for Imanol Alguacil. He still has several continued absences due to injury concerns, but such is the depth and chemistry between them, the busy physio room hasn’t harmed results on the pitch.
There are no forced moves from the 1-1 draw with Celta, but key man David Silva is said to be two weeks away from a return.
Gorosabel and Pacheco are back in the fold and available.
Martín Merquelanz, Umar Sadiq, Mohamed-Ali Cho and Aritz Elustondo remain out.
Betting Analysis
Looking at the 1×2 market first. Sociedad are the favoruites @ 2.40. A hugely struggling Valencia is @ 3.05 which is understandable but it could be the value given that it’s the new manager’s home debut. He will receive a hero welcome pregame and so the atmosphere should be positive and noisy, a big positive for the host. The draw is @ 3.30.
Moving onto the Asian handicap betting for this contest. For the reasons Valencia should play better outlined above, I’d consider them +0.25 @ 1.82. Sociedad is a much more confident and effective team, however, so it’s an ugly bet for punters for sure. Real Sociedad -0.25 is @2.06.
Looking at The Under/Over goal betting last of all, where the line is set slightly low at 2.25. Over is @ 2.03 and Under @ 1.80.
