Real Oviedo travelled to a home side who were in desperate need of points, and their need would tell. The home side’s onslaught overwhelmed Oviedo in the opening minutes of the encounter, in which time the Madrid side managed
to take the lead.
Linares, Michu and Varela came into the side in the absence of Toché and Christian, but Rayo showed their teeth right from the outset. The first warning arrived as an early effort struck Oviedo’s post. Minutes later, Ebert was able to convert a penalty and give his side the lead, with Johannesson seeing a yellow card in the process. Real Oviedo went in search of the equaliser, but without doing enough to trouble the opposition goalkeeper. Injury to Saúl Berjón prompted a debut for Carlos de Pena on the left wing. The Asturians sought to be calmer in possession and to exert more control on the match. Susaeta went closest, with a shot towards the top corner which Gazzaniga tipped around the post for a corner. Several crosses came into the box but without a finishing touch being applied, and various set pieces came to nothing for Los Azules.
After the break, the home side once again came out in force, eventually extending their lead. Real Oviedo looked to introduce more pace into their game, bringing on Nando and Pereira in attack. Susaeta had an attempt from a free kick, and De Pena hit a long-range effort from the left-hand side of the box which grazed the crossbar. Pereira, meanwhile, missed a one on one chance inside the box in the final stages of the clash.
As such, Real Oviedo left Vallecas without reward, remaining in the playoff places, but now with a reduced advantage over the seventh-placed side. The team will return to training on Tuesday at 10:30, at El Requexón.
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