Our prediction for this Copa del Rey match:
A spot in the Copa del Rey quarter-finals will be at stake when Baleares and Valencia face each other at Estadio Balear. The Primera RFEF side set up a meeting with Valencia by beating both Getafe (5-0) and Celta Vigo (2-1), and they must be high on spirits ahead of Sunday’s clash. A man to keep an eye on in the home team will be Pedro Orfila, who scored a hat-trick in the crushing of Getafe.
Los Che, on the other hand, aim to make amends for a heavy 4-1 loss to Real Madrid. Valencia are not regarded as good travelers, and seeing that Baleares impressed in back-to-back wins over Getafe and Celta Vigo, we believe that there is a big value in betting on draw. Hugo Duro is back from suspension, whilst all Carlos Soler, Gabriel Paulista, Dimitri Foulquier, and Antonio Latorre should miss out with injuries.
Highlighted Player (Maximiliano Gómez):
Commonly referred to as Maxi, the Uruguay striker Maximiliano Gomez is a ball playing forward who does not dive into tackles and is not afraid of a challenge to get closer to goal. Led by a genuine predator’s instinct, Maximiliano Gomez is that kind of a striker who’s always hungry for goals – a trait that’s arguably made him one of the hottest youngsters Uruguay has seen over the past decade.
Maxi Gomez is a strong player with a bulking physique. His friends call him Gucci in reference to a weighty singer from Uruguay – Gustavo ‘El Gucci’ Serafini. Having first stepped on the stage with Defensor Sporting in 2015, Maxi grabbed the spotlight in the penalty shootout against Lanus in the Copa Sudamericana Round of 16 when he displayed commendable courage and composure to send his team through in the competition.
Fearless and utterly intrepid in his exploits, Maxi Gomez was sold to Celta de Vigo in 2017 where he would go on to make an instant impact – with a brace on his debut, in a 3-2 defeat against Real Sociedad.
Highlighted Team (Valencia):
Founded on March 18, 1919, Valencia FC are a Spanish football club that compete in La Liga. Los Che play their home games at Estadio de Mestalla, the stadium which was opened back in May, 1923. The capacity of the venue is 50,000. Seeing that bats are quite common in Valencia, it is no surprise they are nicknamed the Bats.
Valencia made it to the Champions League final on two occasions (2000, 2001), but they were beaten in the title games by Real Madrid and Bayern Munchen respectively. The Spanish club, though, did well to win the UEFA Cup title in the 2003/2004 season, with the team beating Marseille in the final of the competition.
A number of top-class footballers were part of the club in the past, with the likes of Pablo Aimar, Ruben Baraja, David Albelda, Santiago Canizares, John Carew and Gaizka Mendieta all playing for the Estadio de Mestalla outfit. Valencia main colors are white and black, whilst they often where orange jerseys and shorts when playing on the travels.