Real Sociedad v Valencia

Real Sociedad vs Valencia Preview

Real Sociedad slipped down to seventh place in the La Liga standings following their 2-0 defeat away from home at Barcelona on the weekend but although the hosts are now unable to catch the leading four teams in the division, Imanol Alguacil's side are still in contention for a possible top six finish as they trail sixth placed Real Betis by just a single point.

Thursday night's hosts have suffered a couple of defeats in recent weeks which have been against the top two clubs in the table, Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively, but Real Sociedad have also captured victories against the likes of Granada, Cadiz, Alaves and Las Palmas as well, thus maintaining their interest in claiming the last of the European spots.

Just two defeats within their last eight games overall in La Liga suggest Real Sociedad should be in a strong position to register all three points here at their Reale Arena on Thursday night although recent results on home soil have been fairly disappointing for Alguacil's side as they have managed to capture just two wins out of their last nine games in their own backyard.

Valencia know that it's a case of now-or-never for the visitors as they trail their Thursday night's hosts by a six-point margin with just three league games remaining of the campaign so this is a must-win game for Ruben Baraja's side.

However, despite Real Sociedad's indifferent sequence of results at home of late in La Liga, Valencia themselves have experienced something resembling choppy waters in the domestic top flight in recent weeks as they have been handed three defeats within their last four games overall.

Losses at the hands of Real Betis, Barcelona and Alaves, the latter being a 1-0 defeat at home, along with only managing to muster a 0-0 draw at home against Rayo Vallecano does not seem to bode well for the visitors ahead of this upcoming trip to the Reale Arena on Thursday night.

The bigger picture shows Valencia have registered just four wins out of their last 14 matches overall in the Spanish top flight whilst also being dealt six defeats within this period as well, so the prospects of an away win here for Ruben Baraja's side look fairly slim.

To make matters worse, Valencia have recorded just four wins in their previous 16 outings on the road and along with being handed nine losses as well, this looks like being a tough assignment for a Valencia outfit who have their work cut out to get an away win here.

Real Sociedad v Valencia Verdict

Real Sociedad recorded a 1-0 win away from home at Valencia in the earlier corresponding fixture towards the end of September and the hosts look set for another victory over their opponents here as well.

Therefore, our main bet will be Real Sociedad win @ 1.60

Other side bets worth considering:

Real Sociedad win & Under 2.5 goals @ 3.20

Correct Score: Real Sociedad 2-0 @ 6.50