Reigning Spanish champions Real Madrid will look to secure a winning start to 2025 when they travel to the Mestalla Stadium for their La Liga Matchday 19 clash with Valencia on Friday, 3rd January.
Since Atletico Madrid will not return to La Liga action before 12th January, Real Madrid could provisionally claim the top spot with a victory over Valencia.
Valencia vs Real Madrid: Preview
Valencia
Usually a regular in the top-four race, Valencia have struggled to put their best foot forward in La Liga this season. Playing 17 matches in La Liga so far, Valencia have won two matches, played out six draws, and suffered nine defeats. With a mere 12 points to their name, Los Ches find themselves in 19th place in the La Liga rankings. They are level on points with 20th-placed Real Valladolid but are ahead on goal difference (-10 vs -25).
Valencia are without a win in their last five La Liga matches (3 L, 2 D). In their final outing before the end of the year, Carlos Corberan’s side played out a 2-2 draw with Deportivo Alaves.
Real Madrid
La Liga holders Real Madrid were not at their best in the first half of the 2024-25 season. They won 12 games, drew four, and lost two of their 18 matches in the 2024-25 La Liga season. They failed to dominate their opponents in most of these games. However, the fact that they are still just within a point of league leaders Atletico Madrid must be encouraging for Carlo Ancelotti‘s men.
Los Merengues, who won the FIFA Intercontinental Cup at Pachuca’s expense (2-0 win) in December, have been in decent form lately. In their last five Spanish top-flight outings, the All-Whites have won thrice, drawn twice, and lost once. In their closing game of 2024, Real Madrid came away with a commanding 4-2 victory over Sevilla.
Valencia vs Real Madrid: Team News, Potential XI, and Head-to-Head
Valencia
The hosts will be without Jose Gaya, Mouctar Diakhaby, and Thierry Correia on Friday, as they are all on the treatment table. Attacker Fran Perez and goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili could also miss out, while Pepelu is suspended due to an accumulation of yellow cards.
Potential XI: Dimitrievski; Foulquier, Gasiorowski, Mosquera Rioja; Barrenechea, Guerra; Gomez, Almeida, Lopez; Duro.
Real Madrid
Real Madrid will continue to operate without defenders David Alaba, Eder Militao, and Dani Carvajal. Alaba has rejoined team training but he is still not 100% fit to feature. Vinicius Jr., meanwhile, will return to action after missing the Sevilla clash due to suspension.
Potential XI: Courtois; Vazquez, Tchouameni, Rudiger, Garcia; Camavinga, Valverde, Bellingham; Rodrygo, Mbappe, Vinicius Jr.
Head-to-Head
The two Spanish sides have crossed paths 209 times in all competitions. Real Madrid have won 108 times, Valencia 58, while 43 games have ended in a draw.
Valencia vs Real Madrid: Prediction
Real Madrid have not triumphed over Valencia at the Mestalla since September 2021. So, we are not expecting a walk in the park for the European champions on Friday. However, considering the firepower they have, it would be a big shock if they cannot get the job done against the relegation-threatened side.
Our prediction: Valencia 1-3 Real Madrid
