Valencia vs Real Valdolid preview: Injury struck Valdolid look to hold out against Valencia

Albert Celades's 9th place Valencia host 13th place Valdolid in a battle of mid-table obscurity in La Liga at 18:30 BST on Tuesday.

By Daniel Morgan7 July 2020 09:29 BST

GRANADA, SPAIN - JULY 04: Goncalo Guedes of Valencia CF celebrates scoring his teams second goal of the game with team mates during the Liga match between Granada CF and Valencia CF at Mestalla Stadium on July 04, 2020 in Granada, Spain. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

Valencia will look to get back to winning ways against Valdolid after only managing one win since La Liga's return to action in June.

Los Murcelagos' managed a 2-2 draw away to Granada, despite taking the lead in the 68th minute in the form of a Gonçalo Guedes screamer from outside the box - Valencia couldn't hold on as Fede Vico equalized in the 86th minute.

Valdolid managed to edge past Deportivo Alavés as Joaquín Fernández's strike in the 88th minute proved to be the only goal of the game.

Key Battles

Valencia's Maxi Gomez is the clubs top scorer of the season so far, with nine goals and two assists - Valdolid's versatile Joaquín Fernández could well match up against each other. Joaquín has earned an average 6.83 rating when playing in defense (via WhoScored) - standing tall at six feet tall, Fernández's aerial prowess will prove to be an interesting match against Gomez.

Sergi Guardiola is Valdolid's top scorer of the campaign with six goals and two assists and will come up against the former Arsenal defender Gabriel Paulista. Gabriel has kept a clean sheet in six of his 29 appearances this season, conceding an average of 1.35 goals per 90 minutes (via FootyStats).

Previous Meetings

Last time the two sides met in December at the Estadio José Zorrilla, Valdolid took the lead with a free kick from Sergi Guardiola which Jasper Cillessen failed to keep the ball out of his net. Valencia's Manu Vallejo equalized late on to salvage a point in an emphatic manor.

In their previous five encounters, Valencia have managed one win and four draws against Valdolid. Valencia's win came in May 2019 as they won 2-0 away from home.

Team News

For Valencia, Ferran Torres could feature after missing their last clash with a thigh strain.

Jose Gaya and Christiano Piccini will miss the clash through injury, along with Rodrigo who is sidelined for the rest of the season with a knee injury.

Valencia will be without Ezequiel Garay as he has departed the club upon his contract expiring.

Valdolid will be without Jose Antonio Caro, Matheus Fernandes, Pedro Porro and Sandro Ramirez, all of which are sidelined through injury. Oscar Plano will also miss the game through suspension.