Alaves vs Valencia Prediction 15 September 2026
🔊 Valencia have had the first managerial sacking of the season. Five rounds, one point, one goal scored, bottom of the table. After another defeat, the club's board dismissed Carlos Corberán. The sporting director left alongside him, and reserve team coach Óscar Sánchez will be the one dealing with the fallout for now. His first test is an away trip to one of the standout sides of August.
Alavés have just lost for the first time in this season's La Liga, despite taking the lead in Santander and forcing Racing to come from behind. Nobody is treating it as a disaster: the Basques have 10 points from five matches, and at home they are yet to drop a single point. It makes for a good test for both sides. The hosts need to show that the defeat was just a blip, while Valencia need to at least demonstrate that a change of manager can shake up a team that has almost forgotten how to attack.
Head-to-Head
📊 The two sides have met 32 times. Valencia have won 15, Alaves eight, and nine matches have ended in draws. The average total is exactly 2.5 goals. The historical advantage lies clearly with the visitors, but the current situation bears little resemblance to that record.
Last season's meetings produced no clear winner between the pair either. In Vitoria the teams played out a goalless draw, while the return fixture at Mestalla was a far livelier affair, with Valencia coming out on top 3-2. Circumstances are quite different now, though: one club is up among the leaders, while the other arrives bottom of the table and without a manager.
Head-to-head statistics Alaves - Valencia
Deportivo Alaves Team Overview
Kike Sánchez Flores has put together one of the biggest surprises of the early season. After five rounds, Alavés have three wins, a draw and one defeat, with a goal difference of 11:5. The team are not simply grinding out results - they are shooting frequently, pushing forward aggressively, and have already shown they can overpower any opponent at home.
The defeat to Racing dented the picture somewhat, but the manager did not make a drama of it afterwards. He made the point that anger is only warranted when his players stop fighting.
Match Results: Deportivo Alaves
Valencia Team Overview
Five matches have turned into a slow decline for Valencia: one draw and four consecutive defeats, with just a single goal scored. What is particularly alarming is not the run itself but how toothless the attack has become. In Seville, the team managed just three shots and registered 0.09 xG - almost the entire evening passed without any real threat to the opposition goal.
Now it falls to Óscar Sánchez to try to turn things around on the fly. He has had no proper preparation time and no opportunity to rebuild. There are only a couple of days between Corberán's dismissal and the match. An instant revolution is therefore hard to expect. A more realistic first step would be to restore some order, simplify the football and at least stop giving the opposition so much space.
Match Results: Valencia
Latest news
Deportivo Alaves
🚑 Facundo Garcés and Mikel Rodríguez are both continuing their recovery from serious knee injuries and will definitely not feature. Aitor Mañas is a doubt. He took a heavy blow to the head in the match against Racing and was taken to hospital for assessment.
Valencia
❌ Mukhtar Diakhaby, Diego López, Sergi Canós and Umar Sadiq are definitely out. The coaching staff will also assess the fitness of Dimitri Foulquier, Guido Rodríguez, José Copete, Justin de Haas, Luis Rioja and Ryunosuke Sato ahead of the match.
⚽ Goals Prediction
Alavés have no need to chase a third or fourth goal. Against Valencia, it is enough to take control, find their chance and then make the visitors work out how to attack on their own. And that is precisely where the guests struggle. One goal in five league rounds, four consecutive matches without scoring and virtually no threat against Sevilla. After the change of manager, Valencia will almost certainly try to stop falling apart rather than suddenly switch into all-out attack mode. This match could quite easily end with just one or two goals. Our pick: Total Goals - Under 2.5 at 1.65*.
🚩 Corners Prediction
The corners picture is more interesting. Alavés matches at the start of the season have averaged around 10.5 corners, and the team itself delivers more than five per game. The Basques are active down the flanks and do not always ease off even when comfortable on the scoreboard.
Valencia's away profile is also worth noting. In their away matches, the combined average rises to around 10.75 corners, with opponents getting plenty of opportunities at the flag. Even if goals are scarce, the hosts' territorial dominance and the visitors' attempts to get back into the game could be enough to reach the required ten. Our pick: Total Corners - Over 9.5 at 1.80*.
🟨 Yellow Cards Prediction
Alavés play with more edge - after five rounds they average 2.6 bookings per match. Valencia are noticeably calmer, picking up just 1.6. Alavés matches produce around 4.4 yellows, Valencia's around 3.6. The pattern points more towards a cautious game: the hosts have no reason to let it get heated, and Valencia, after the managerial shake-up, will almost certainly want to keep things disciplined. On top of that, across five rounds the two clubs have only once exceeded six cards in a match. Our pick: Total Yellow Cards - Under 5.5.
*Odds are indicative and may vary across different bookmakers.
⭐️ Editorial Prediction
The most obvious angle is to look at Valencia's attack again. The team are not just struggling to score - they have almost stopped creating situations from which they can threaten at all. Things are unlikely to get any easier at Mendizorrotza. Alavés are confident at home and capable of keeping opponents away from their goal for long stretches. That said, backing a clean-sheet home win is not necessarily the only option. The managerial change could make Valencia more cautious, and the Basques played a tough match in Santander just three days ago. Predicted score: 1-0. Main bet: Both Teams to Score - No.
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Betting Tips: Deportivo Alaves - Valencia
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