Elche vs Real Valladolid Predictions & Match Preview

Elche vs Real Valladolid predictions and match preview for Saturday’s LaLiga fixture. Read on for analysis, team news and predicted lineups as two bottom half sides clash.

Elche vs Real Valladolid Preview

Elche recorded their second win of the season last time out and they can banish any talk of record low points tallies with another success here. They are still 13 points from safety which is an absolute mountain to climb at this late stage in the season, but they are at least looking more competitive now.

Their victory came in surprising fashion against Mallorca with a fine finish from Lucas Boye sealing victory. There was late controversy as Vedat Muriqi had a Stoppage Time leveller ruled out for the hosts. However Elche will probably feel as though they were due a bit of good fortune after events in their last home game, a 3-2 defeat to Betis which saw the visitors awarded three Second Half penalties.

Pablo Machin does deserve credit with both of Elche’s wins this season coming under him and he’s in a strong position to be the man trusted with trying to guide them back up next term. Relegated teams do always have an advantage in the second tier and it’s safe to say that Elche will have had plenty of time to prepare for their promotion push given they can already say with some certainty that they’ll be a Segunda side in 2023/24.

Real Valladolid meanwhile are very much still battling for their future. They’ve won 3 of their last 6 matches too to bolster their survival prospects with a key 2-1 win over Espanyol last time out. There are still problems for Pacheta but he did at least get to see a couple of other names on the scoresheet last time out with January signing Cyle Larin their only player to have scored since the World Cup prior to that.

Their away form is more concerning though. They’ve lost 9 out of 12 on their travels in LaLiga 2022/23, with only 3 sides collecting fewer away points. They succumbed to a poor 3-0 defeat at Celta in their last road match but will see this as their best opportunity to pick up another away win before the season is finished.

Team News & Possible Lineups

Elche

Possible XI: Badia – Bigas, Roco, Palacios – Clerc, Gumbau, Mascarell, Carmona – Fidel, Nteka – Boye (3-4-2-1)

Coach: Pablo Machin

Real Valladolid

Possible XI: Asenjo – Escudero, Javi Sanchez, El Yamiq, Fresneda – Mesa, Hongla – Machis, Plano, Plata – Larin (4-2-3-1)

Coach: Pacheta

Score Prediction: Elche 2-1 Real Valladolid

Elche are playing with a bit of belief again and can take confidence from recent wins over Villarreal and Mallorca. Lucas Boye makes a big difference for them in attack and he is hopefully over his injury struggles now. They’ve a decent shot here of picking up another win against a Real Valladolid side that rarely looks convincing on the road.

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.