RAYO VALLECANO NEWS

Braithwaite comes through with winner in Espanyol debut

Martin Braithwaite didn’t have to go far to start showing his worth again in Spain

SEPTEMBER 4, 2022 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Lewandowski leads Barcelona; Benzema keeps Madrid perfect

Robert Lewandowski continues to make scoring look easy after joining Barcelona from Bayern Munich

AUGUST 28, 2022 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Lewandowski's birthday double leads Barça to 1st league win

Robert Lewandowski left his mark with a pair of goals on his 34th birthday and Barcelona’s high-profile attack finally clicked in a 4-1 win at Real Sociedad for its first victory o...

AUGUST 21, 2022 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Stole Dimitrievski - Shuts out Espanyol in win Dimitrievski kept a clean sheet with one save made during Friday's 2-0 win over Espanyol.

Impact In under a week, Dimitrievski has gone into Barcelona and shut out both clubs based in the city in impressive style. While it could be that the pressure of better competition from Diego Lopez has motivated Dimitrievski, he and his teammates have shown impressive tactical composure against opponents of different styles and talent levels. It wouldn't be surprising to see him keep up his form for a few more weeks, but Rayo aren't a deep enough team to make this last forever without more consistency from the attack.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Ivan Balliu - Solid in win Balliu kept a clean sheet with six clearances made and created one chance during Friday's 2-0 win over Espanyol.

Impact Balliu has gone the full 90 in both of his side's first two games, shutting out both Barcelona-based clubs in under a week. While his attacking contribution needs to increase if he's to offer good fantasy value, his reliability at the back is a solid starting point.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Alejandro Catena - Keeps another clean sheet Catena kept a clean sheet with nine clearances made during Friday's 2-0 win over Espanyol.

Impact Catena anchored a second straight clean sheet even with Florian Lejeune getting sent off just 16 minutes into the contest. In a team that's built on defensive stability first, Catena could be a reliable asset as long as Rayo remain in good form.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Randy Nteka - Debut in win Nteka played for five minutes of Friday's 2-0 win over Espanyol.

Impact Nteka started 16 times in 34 appearances last season but the arrival of Sergio Camello has seemingly pushed him down the depth chart. That's only likely to make his fantasy value worse after scoring just three times during the 2021/22 campaign.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Falcao - Comes off bench in win Falcao put two shots off target in 16 minutes of Friday's 2-0 win over Espanyol.

Impact Falcao has put in two shifts off the bench to open the season as Sergio Camello has been preferred from kickoff. Expect the two to rotate a bit as the season progresses, but if neither find the net then neither will offer much reason to be worth tracking.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Alvaro Garcia - Provides assist in win Garcia provided one assist from one chance created during Friday's 2-0 win over Espanyol.

Impact Garcia has created just one chance in two games but it's resulted in one of his side's two goals scored so far. It's interesting to see Rayo have success without needing a high number of crosses in comparison to last season, but that's not as good a sign for the fantasy value of Garcia or Oscar Trejo.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Pathe Ciss - Scores against Espanyol Ciss scored one goal from two shots and made seven clearances during Friday's 2-0 win over Espanyol.

Impact Ciss offers the right production for a defensive midfielder with one goal on three shots, seven tackles made (six won) and two clean sheets through two games. Even with a yellow card in the opener against Barcelona, these are solid numbers from Ciss worth tracking. It seems unlikely that Ciss and his teammates will keep their net empty forever, but if they can do it against Barca they can surely keep up the pace for a bit longer.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Unai Lopez - Adds assist in win Lopez provided one assist from one chance created and committed three fouls during Friday's 2-0 win over Espanyol.

Impact Lopez set up Isi Palazon's opening goal and was far more involved during this game, completing 45 passes after only recording 14 in the opener against Barcelona. While there are some matchup-based reasons for that difference, it's a decent sign that Lopez can make the occasional play. Still, he's a defensive-minded midfielder in a side that has subbed him out in two straight games and that's not great for fantasy value.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Isi Palazon - Scores in win Palazon scored one goal from one shot in 57 minutes of Friday's 2-0 win over Espanyol.

Impact Palazon put home a nice curler from the edge of the box to take the lead in the first half. Though he's started both matches to open the season, he's only taken one shot and drawn eight fouls. It could be worth seeing what he can do in favorable matchups but his minutes and possession don't suggest outstanding fantasy production.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Sergio Camello - Takes two shots in win Camello took two shots (one on goal) in 74 minutes of Friday's 2-0 win over Espanyol.

Impact Camello has started in the first two games of the season but has yet to find the net. One can only hope that either he or Radamel Falcao finds their scoring form soon, but until then the team is in top defensive form so look elsewhere for fantasy value.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Florian Lejeune - Sent off against Espanyol Lejeune was shown a red card in the 17th minute of Friday's match against Espanyol following a foul on Joselu for his second booking of the match.

Impact Lejeune picked up two cards in a three-minute span on Friday and was promptly sent off. He will be suspended for next weekend's clash against Mallorca, where Esteban Saveljich (strain) could replace him in central defense if he's fit enough.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Esteban Saveljich - On bench against Espanyol Saveljich (strain) is in Rayo's match day squad for Friday's clash against Espanyol.

Impact Saveljich hasn't featured in La Liga since suffering an injury against Cadiz back in March, but he is available off the bench on Friday. He started 21 games in central defense last season but the acquisition of Florian Lejeune from Alaves has increased the competition in the position.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Isi Palazon - Starting against Espanyol Palazon is in Rayo's starting lineup for Friday's clash against Espanyol.

Impact Palazon played 79 minute on the right wing in last weekend's season opener against Barcelona and he's back in the XI from the start on Friday.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Oscar Trejo - Starting against Espanyol Trejo (undisclosed) is starting for Rayo against Espanyol on Friday.

Impact Trejo picked up a knock in last weekend's draw against Barcelona, but he has recovered and is back in the lineup in attacking midfield on Friday.

AUGUST 19, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Barcelona looks to rebound quickly after early setback

The expectations were high for Barcelona coming into the new season

AUGUST 18, 2022 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Andres Martín - Unable to play Martin isn't fit for Friday's match against Espanyol, according to manager Andoni Iraola.

Impact Martin has yet to play since returning from a loan to Tenerife and even when he does return, he won't be much more than an option off the bench.

AUGUST 18, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Diego Lopez - Out against former club Lopez won't be available for Friday's match at Espanyol, according to manager Andoni Iraola via Union Rayo.

Impact Lopez also missed the first match of the season against Barcelona but this could be a bigger deal to miss this contest against his last team. As a result, Stole Dimitrievski will remain the starter for Friday's game.

AUGUST 18, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Santi Comesana - Continues rehab Comesana remains unable to participate in training due to an undisclosed injury ahead of Friday's trip to Espanyol, according to Union Rayo.

Impact Comesana also missed the opening draw with Barcelona and is unlikely to return in time for Friday's game. Look for Oscar Trejo and Alvaro Garcia to conduct the attack until Comesana can play.

AUGUST 17, 2022 • ROTOWIRE

Esteban Saveljich - Returns to training Saveljich participated in Tuesday's training session, according to Union Rayo.

Impact Saveljich couldn't work up enough fitness in preseason and as a result missed the opening day draw with Barcelona. He started in 21 games last season but none after March and with Florian Lejeune now with the club, Saveljich has a greater competition on his hands for minutes.

AUGUST 17, 2022 • ROTOWIRE