Las Palmas vs Valencia

Estadio de Gran Canaria is the venue as Las Palmas and Valencia go head-to-head in a tasty-looking La Liga encounter.

Las Palmas’ unlikely European push took a tumble last weekend as they could only manage a 1-1 draw against relegation-threatened Granada despite being a man up for almost 70 minutes. Valencia’s upcoming visit could be just what the doctor ordered for Las Palmas to get back to winning ways, considering they’ve emerged victorious in the last three La Liga H2Hs they’ve hosted. However, ‘El Submarino Amarillo’ have rarely punched above their weight this season, picking up just one win in nine league matches against sides starting the round above them in the standings (D1, L7). Moreover, they have only won once in their last four top-flight outings on home turf (D1, L2), most recently succumbing to a 2-1 defeat to Real Madrid despite opening the scoring.

Meanwhile, Valencia refused to let a 2-1 defeat at Atletico Madrid on their last La Liga travel deter them from applying the pressure on the European spots, with Ruben Baraja’s side overcoming rock-bottom Almeria 2-1 at home in the previous round. Only three points separate them from sixth-placed Real Betis, albeit with a game in hand, but playing on the road potentially spells trouble. Valencia’s underwhelming traveling record this La Liga season (W3, D3, L6) diminishes their chances of pulling off a top-flight double over Las Palmas after a narrow 1-0 win in the reverse fixture. Terminally unable to keep a clean sheet on the road, they’ve registered just one shutout on 12 La Liga travels this season, with only two teams doing worse.