Rayo Vallecano Presses Forward in European Pursuit with Garcia Steering Victory Over Las Palmas

Las Palmas’ aspirations for survival in LaLiga continue to diminish following their 1-0 loss to Rayo Vallecano at the Estadio de Gran Canaria, marking their third consecutive match without a win (L3).

Rayo Vallecano approached the match desperate for a victory to reinstate themselves in the UEFA Europa League qualification spots ahead of Celta Vigo’s clash with Sevilla tomorrow afternoon.

Los Franjirrojos started the match brightly, controlling possession and creating chances early on, yet Diego Martínez’s men struggled to register a shot that bothered Dinko Horkas.

That changed in the 22nd minute when a corner found Florian Lejuene, whose header was directed straight at the Croatian goalkeeper.

However, the best opportunity in the first half fell to the home side. Mika Marmol found Oli McBurnie in the box, but the striker’s shot was impressively saved by Augusto Batalla, who pushed it away from the bottom-left corner.

After that opportunity, Las Palmas continued to find it difficult to gain control of the match. Nonetheless, they held firm until half-time, heading into the break on level terms.

The second half commenced sluggishly, with neither team displaying much quality in the final third. However, that all changed in the 66th minute when Rayo Vallecano broke the deadlock. Alvaro Garcia manoeuvred past his defender within the penalty area before firing a brilliant shot off the underside of the crossbar.

Following the goal, Las Palmas looked to assert more influence on the game but failed to create significant threats against the Vallecano defence.

The closest the home side came to scoring was in the 77th minute when McBurnie attempted a header from a corner, but it sailed well over the bar. Martínez’s side held firm, securing a crucial three points in their pursuit of Europa League qualification and moving up to seventh place in the standings.

In contrast, Las Palmas now face an uphill battle, sitting three points adrift of safety with only three matches left to play.