Sporting Gijon v Valencia
Tuesday 8th January 2030hrs
Football – Spain – Cope Del Rey
Pick: Draw
Bookmaker: Betfair
Odds: 12/5 (odds taken 21.30 GMT, Monday 7th January)
Copa Del Rey Betting at Betfair
The Copa Del Rey is at the last 16 stage with each of the first legs taking place this midweek, starting with this tie in Gijon. Neither of these clubs have been able to find the consistency they would have liked to in the first half of their seasons and suffered defeats in their first games of 2019 – can either of them find some form in the cup? Continue reading for a match preview of Sporting Gijon versus Valencia, with a selected best betting tip.
Sporting Gijon Preview
Sporting currently ply their trade in the Segunda division in Spain and having reached the promotion playoffs last season only to miss out at the semi-final stage, they have suffered something of a hangover. Defeat at home to Real Zaragoza on Saturday was their first in seven matches but they find themselves in mid-table and will have to improve in the second half of the season if they are to threaten the playoff positions once again. Their run in the Copa Del Rey has been altogether more positive having negotiated three rounds already. Two away wins against teams from their own league – Numancia and Rayo Majadahonda – set up an encounter with Eibar in the previous round. It is that that stage where the two-legged ties are introduced and Sporting delivered two excellent performances to see of the La Liga outfit 4-2 on aggregate. Now getting into the latter stages of the cup, the level of competition is only going to increase but they may fancy their chances of providing another cup shock against a Valencia team who have been struggling all season.
Valencia Preview
From the massive high of finishing in the top four of La Liga last season and qualifying for the Champions League, Valencia and their coach Marcelino have found things much more difficult this time around. Like Sporting, they too lost their first match of this year by a 2-1 margin, going down to Alaves on Saturday. And also like their opponents in the cup, it has left them smack bang in mid-table with an urgent need to go on a run in order to reach what they deemed would be a more suitable league position. Participation in the Champions League ended at the group stage but they do have a Europa League clash with Celtic to come next month as they look to extend their European season. It’s because of their participation in European football that Valencia have played only one tie in the Copa Del Rey thus far, and that came against Ebro who play in the league below Sporting Gijon. It was a comfortable enough progression, winning both legs at an aggregate of 3-1. Marcelino will know that this tie is a much trickier one, though, and will be looking to avoid being on the wrong end of a cup upset.
Sporting Gijon v Valencia Betting Advice
This is a busy stage of the season for Spanish clubs who are still engaged in the Copa Del Rey, with the two-legged format meaning the games come thick and fast. Neither Sporting or Valencia are placed where they would like to be in their respective leagues so not only will it be a busy period, it’s also a really important time in relation to their seasons. Sporting’s win over Eibar in the previous round illustrates their motivation for progressing as far as possible whilst they are now the only team outside of La Liga still competing in the Copa Del Rey. Valencia have not had the success they would have liked in this competition considering some of the teams they’ve had down the years, and it’s now over a decade since they were victorious in it.
These two teams have been the draw specialists in their leagues this season. Sporting have shared the points in eight of their 20 Segunda games whilst their opponents have done likewise in 10 of 18 La Liga games. The format of the latter stages of the Copa Del Rey lends itself to the first leg being a more cagey affair and you sense that neither team would be overly disappointed with a draw before settling it in the return.
