Valencia Club de Fútbol desperately need a positive result at the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán on Wednesday to halt their dreadful start to the season. The team, sitting bottom of La Liga with just one point from four games, arrive off the back of a painful thrashing by Barcelona.
The situation is critical. Valencia have lost four of their last five official matches, with only a draw against Celta to show for their efforts. The defeat to Barça last weekend was their third consecutive loss in the league, leaving the team with just one goal scored and nine conceded. The coaching staff are searching for answers amid an injury list that includes key players like Mouctar Diakhaby and Dimitri Foulquier.
The Valencia manager will have to reorganise a defence that showed serious flaws in the last outing. In attack, the responsibility will once again fall on Arnaut Danjuma, who was the sole starting forward in the setup used against Barcelona. The full squad and injury status can be checked on our injuries page.
Sevilla have had an inconsistent start, with two wins, a loss and a draw from their first four league games. Víctor Orta's side could only manage a draw with Espanyol last time out and also have a confirmed absentee: midfielder Rubén Vargas is ruled out with physical discomfort until the end of the month. Their last starting eleven showed an attacking shape with three forwards, which will provide another test for Valencia's fragile backline.
The match against Sevilla is the prelude to another tough challenge, as Valencia face second-placed Alavés at Mendizorrotza next Saturday. The upcoming fixtures schedule confirms the difficulty of the immediate calendar for a team in urgent need of points.
