The Barcelona manager Hansi Flick defended the use of the video assistant referees (VAR) after Rayo Vallecano were left fuming following a number of controversial decisions during Monday’s match in La Liga. The Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski scored the winner from the penalty spot in the first-half following a long VAR review over a foul inside the box that the referee did not catch on first sight. Rayo also complained after they were denied a penalty and were further angered when they were denied an equaliser as they thought Jorge de Frutos’ strike was harshly ruled out in the 42nd minute. Continue reading...

The Catalan club took advantage of weekend slip-ups by Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid  Leer

A chaotic and dramatic end to Friday’s 1-0 win at Leganés extended Rayo Vallecano’s unbeaten run to eight matches The ball was in play for just four seconds during the last 11 minutes of another Madrid derby but that was enough, every emotion packed into eight touches and 100 freeze-frames on a cold Friday night across the motorways to the south of the city. The difference between triumph and disaster was a fine line painted white and a goalkeeper in green. Leganés were suddenly, unexpectedly lifted up and handed a lifeline, only to be knocked down, lifted up, knocked down, lifted up and knocked down again. Rayo Vallecano, meanwhile, were taken on the same journey in the other direction, eventually left standing, celebrating something they couldn’t imagine before and wouldn’t imagine now. “Very mad,” the Rayo striker Sergio Camello called it. All of it: the fact they, the club who have only played European football once and thanks to fair play, had just won 1-0 and were sixth and the way they got there, how close they had been to having it taken away again, everything unfolding so fast feelings couldn’t catch up. “I can still feel the fright,” the manager Iñigo Pérez said. “You play football for years, watch it, even start coaching, and think you’ve seen it all. But this is something that’s never happened to me.” What had happened shouldn’t have, he said, an epic end his team could have avoided, but it was better this way, Augusto Batalla performing a miraculous rescue by saving a last-second penalty. Continue reading...

Only the international stage with Colombia suits an unfulfilled talent who flopped at Everton and faded away at Real Madrid On Monday, Rayo Vallecano released James Rodríguez on a free transfer. It hadn’t been much of a stay. In four and a half months at the club, he managed 136 minutes of league football. Only once did he start in La Liga. Rodríguez is 33 now. Since he left Everton in 2021, he has started just 37 league games and scored only 10 goals. This is the sixth season in a row in which he has been released on a free transfer as he has drifted from Real Madrid to the team currently 12th in the table, via Qatar, Greece and Brazil. The sense is of a waning career nearing its end. And yet in those three and a half years since his last game for Everton, Rodríguez has played 32 times for Colombia. While at Rayo, he has played 374 international minutes. True, he doesn’t often last a full game, but there are few other indications of decline. As Colombia reached the final of last year’s Copa América, he was named player of the tournament. His is a career that seems to run on two parallel tracks: at club level he is a fading star, a player who perhaps never quite lived up to his potential. But at international level, while in the autumn of his career, he remains a maestro. Continue reading...

Barcelona are back in action at 21:30 CEST against Rayo Vallecano on Tuesday night, in the knowledge that after just three games, they could go clear at the top of the table as the only side with a 100% record. Standing in their way is their traditional bogey ground of Vallecas, where Barcelona have taken […] The post Predicted Teams for Rayo Vallecano-Barcelona: Will Dani Olmo and James Rodriguez play? appeared first on Football España.

While the Madrid clubs’ main men had a quiet weekend, the supporting cast stepped up and showed their worth The Spiderman and the mutant turtle were in town for the first time but someone else had to save the day. So along came the little bird, the little prince, the great big cucumber, Brahim, the boy Bobby and sweet potato. Then there was the Resurrección. Madrid is hot and empty in August, or it’s supposed to be, metal shutters down and scribbled signs up saying see you in September, but there were 140,744 people combined at the Santiago Bernabéu, Butarque and the Metropolitano this Sunday, excitement building as the capital’s teams came home for another season, kicking off at 5pm, 7pm and 9.30pm, from one end of the metro to the other and back again. They had come to see Leganés return to primera, a 2-1 win over Las Palmas set up by a belting shot from Juan Cruz, who is now running at a goal and a hair style a game, the latest like some comedy 70s wig in two tones, AS’s headline declaring: “Cruz is a cucumber”. And the night before, another 9,529 were at the Coliseum for Getafe against Rayo Vallecano, but they didn’t see anything: for the first time this century, a La Liga match went by without a single shot on target. Mostly, though, they came to watch those two, world cup winners and new heroes for a new era, cartoon characters capturing everyone’s attention. Continue reading...

Barcelona manager Hansi Flick addressed the media ahead of their clash with Rayo Vallecano on Tuesday night, with the majority of the questions centering around the club’s transfer activity. Clement Lenglet, Vitor Roque and Mikayil Faye have left the club, but Barcelona still do not have sufficient space to register star signing Dani Olmo. Given […] The post Barcelona manager Hansi Flick against Eric Garcia exit amid Girona interest appeared first on Football España.

Rayo Vallecano have history with high-profile Colombian signings, and they do not come much bigger than Radamel Falcao. The iconic forward left Rayo this summer on a free, but international teammate James Rodriguez will replace him. ⏳ Se va acercando la hora del café, ¿no? ? pic.twitter.com/l8HTHAKoly — Rayo Vallecano (@RayoVallecano) August 26, 2024 Rodriguez, […] The post Colombia and ex-Real Madrid star returns to La Liga on one-year deal appeared first on Football España.

Barcelona manager Hansi Flick was back in front of the press less than 48 hours after his side overcame Athletic Club on Saturday in their first home game of the season at Montjuic. The Blaugrana now face a tricky trip to Rayo Vallecano at Vallecas, but will do so without Vitor Roque. Since the Athletic […] The post Barcelona manager Hansi Flick on Vitor Roque exit – ‘It’s totally wrong to say I’m not counting on him’ appeared first on Football España.

Barcelona have made one major addition to their squad this summer in Dani Olmo, but there is still no clarity on when he will be available. The 26-year-old joined from RB Leipzig for €55m plus €7m in variables, but looks set to miss a third straight game against Rayo Vallecano on Tuesday after sitting out […] The post Barcelona still unable to register Dani Olmo despite exits – three avenues to solve issue appeared first on Football España.

Despite having signed over two weeks ago, Dani Olmo is still unable to play for Barcelona. There was hope that he’d be registered in time to face Athletic Club on Saturday, but it was not to be. It means that he is still waiting to make his debut. Attention now turns to whether he will […] The post “I don’t know” – Hansi Flick casts doubt on Dani Olmo’s availability for Rayo Vallecano-Barcelona appeared first on Football España.

Saturday night’s La Liga action ended with two tight clashes as Getafe held Rayo Vallecano and Real Sociedad edged out Espanyol. Osasuna produced an early victory, either side of Barcelona’s 2-1 win over Athletic Club, on a gritty night of matches. Osasuna 1-0 Mallorca Osasuna got the ball rolling with a narrow home win over […] The post La Liga Round Up: Getafe hold Rayo Vallecano and Real Sociedad edge out Espanyol appeared first on Football España.

Getafe’s chastening transfer window continues, as Jose Bordalas continues to prepare for their second league match against Rayo Vallecano. Los Azulones earned a point against Athletic, but he will not be pleased about only having 17 players at his disposal. This week the sale of Gaston Alvarez to Al-Qadsiah in Saudi Arabia was confirmed, which […] The post Getafe transfer update: Big sale frees up room for recruits but iconic captain tipped to exit appeared first on Football España.

Earlier this week, it was reported that Mikel Merino was to be omitted from Real Sociedad’s matchday squad for their La Liga opener against Rayo Vallecano, taking place at Reale Arena on Sunday evening. The club have now confirmed this to be the case. Merino is expected to sign for Arsenal in the coming days, […] The post Official: Mikel Merino left out of Real Sociedad squad for La Liga opener ahead of imminent Arsenal transfer appeared first on Football España.