Valencia vs Almeria Predictions & Match Preview

Valencia vs Almeria predictions and match preview for Monday’s LaLiga fixture. Read on for analysis, team news and predicted lineups as Almeria travel to Mestalla.

Valencia vs Almeria Preview

The Monday night game in LaLiga comes from Mestalla this week with Valencia playing host to Almeria. It has been a tough period in the league for Gennaro Gattuso’s side and they could really do with getting back to winning ways here.

It has the potential to be a season-defining kind of week for Los Che. They have a Copa del Rey Quarter-Final to come at home to Athletic Club on Thursday. Either side of that are two games against newly promoted sides in LaLiga. Two wins would push them back up towards the European battle however they come into this game only 2 points above the relegation zone.

A relegation battle was certainly not on the agenda for Gennaro Gattuso and his team this season. The quality of their football has at times been impressive and they should have far too much to be sucked into the dogfight at the bottom but they have lost both league games since the World Cup, including a shock 1-0 defeat against Cadiz last time out.

This game in theory offers Los Che a chance to get back on track. Almeria have not travelled well this season with just 2 points from 8 road games, the worst away record in the division. Indeed their only away points have come at Cadiz and Elche, the current bottom two as LaLiga nears the midway point.

Almeria don’t have any cup distractions though so they have a slight advantage in that sense and they secured a decent draw against Atletico Madrid in their most recent league game. El Bilal Toure struck for Rubi’s side who are not short on attacking options with the likes of Luis Suarez and Largie Ramazani only worthy of a place on the bench in that one. Defensively there are still a few issues though with just one clean sheet so far this term for the Andalusian side.

Team News & Possible Lineups

Valencia

Possible XI: Mamardashvili – Gaya, Diakhaby, Comert, Foulquier – Musah, Guillamon, Almeida – Lino, Cavani, Kluivert (4-3-3)

Coach: Gennaro Gattuso

Almeria

Possible XI: Fernando – Akieme, Ely, Babic, Pozo – Samu, Robertone – Embarba, Melero, Baptistao – Toure (4-2-3-1)

Coach: Rubi

Score Prediction: Valencia 2-1 Almeria

Valencia were thwarted by Cadiz in their last home game but this is a different kind of fixture. Almeria don’t really have the tools to just sit deep and dig in for a result and it’s likely we’ll see a fairly open encounter here with chances at both ends. Overall Valencia have a bit more quality though and home advantage ought to help swing this in their favour.

PLEASE NOTE – Our LaLiga predictions are not betting tips! No profits are guaranteed if you’re using them to bet on Spanish football. If you are gambling, do so responsibly and never stake more than you can afford to lose. BeGambleAware.