Rayo Vallecano vs Espanyol prediction 23.04.2026 | La Liga

Rayo Vallecano came to this year after a magnificent last season in La Liga, where they finished 8th! This year, they are not even remotely close to that. That is maybe the price of playing on multiple fronts and their success in the Conference League. In La Liga, they are in 13th place but only three points away from dropping down to 18th and the relegation zone. They are on very thin ice, but we still believe they are good enough not to get too involved in the relegation battle.

Florian Lejeune and Nobel Mendy will serve their one-game suspension due to yellow card accumulation. An additional problem for Rayo is that two important players (Luiz Felipe and Alvaro Garcia) suffered injuries in the previous game against AEK and will most likely miss the upcoming game. Moreover, Diego Mendez and Fran Perez should remain sidelined with their injuries. 

Espanyol have been amazing in the first part of the season, and it looked like they would easily secure Europe. Unfortunately, they failed to win in this calendar year and are currently on a 14-game winless streak. After 31 rounds, they sit in 10th place with 38 points. Even though that is not too bad, their current form is definitely a reason for concern. At the moment, they are a bit closer to Europe than to the relegation zone, but we highly doubt they can move up, and finishing around the middle of the table seems the most realistic. 

Midfielder Urko Gonzalez collected his fifth yellow card in the previous game and will serve his one-game suspension. However, that might be a good thing since he has been atrocious in recent matches. Moreover, Javi Puado will remain sidelined with his injury.