Alavés vs Valencia: Sadiq Needed as Los Che Eye First Win – Preview, team news, tips & H2H

Umar Sadiq made his name at Valencia during the second half of the 2024-25 season, arriving on loan from Real Sociedad in January 2025 and scoring six goals in 19 appearances to help pull the club out of a relegation fight, Afrik-Foot reports.

It was enough to convince Los Che to make the deal permanent in January 2026, bringing the Super Eagles striker back to Mestalla on a contract running until June 2028.

He carried that form into the current season, scoring the goal that stands as Valencia’s only La Liga contribution across five matches.

He will not play on Tuesday. A hamstring injury has ruled the 29-year-old out until early November.

Valencia travel to Vitoria-Gasteiz with one point from five La Liga games, a goal difference of -9, and an injury list that has stripped the squad to its bones.

Deportivo Alavés, sitting third in the table with 11 league goals in five games, are waiting for them at Mendizorroza.

Alavés vs Valencia match preview

Alavés have produced the brightest start to a La Liga season in their recent history under Quique Sánchez Flores.

A 3-0 win at Getafe on August 15 opened the campaign, followed by a 1-1 draw at Rayo Vallecano before Sánchez Flores’ side returned to Mendizorroza to win back-to-back home games: 1-0 against Villarreal on August 29, then a 5-2 demolition of Osasuna on September 6.

After those first four matchdays, only Barcelona had scored more La Liga goals than Alavés’ ten.

Last Saturday’s 2-1 defeat at Racing Santander ended their unbeaten run and handed Sánchez Flores a reminder that no side navigates a full La Liga season without setbacks, but the hosts head into Tuesday’s fixture in considerably better shape than their opponents by every relevant measure.

Valencia are bottom of the table. Their 5-0 home defeat to Barcelona on September 6 brought supporters onto the streets outside Mestalla in protest, and a 1-0 loss at Sevilla five days later confirmed that no bounce had followed.

One La Liga goal in five matches is the defining statistic of their campaign so far, and the player who scored it is now in the treatment room until early November.

With Sadiq sidelined, Diego López out until January with a cruciate ligament injury, and Sergi Canós facing an early December return from his own ACL problem, Corberán’s squad is being reduced to players who were not trusted to solve the attacking problem when it was at full strength.

Head-to-head record: Alavés vs Valencia

Valencia lead the overall La Liga record between these clubs, winning 17 of 37 league meetings to Alavés’ ten, with ten draws.

The more recent picture is considerably tighter. Across their last 22 competitive meetings in all competitions, Valencia lead nine wins to eight, with five draws, and Alavés have been unbeaten in their last five competitive home matches against Los Che at Mendizorroza.

Both encounters last season ended narrowly: a goalless draw at Mendizorroza in October 2025, then a 3-2 Valencia win at Mestalla in March 2026.

That March result was played out by a Valencia side carrying none of the injury concerns of the current squad, and with Sadiq fit, contributing and in form.

Team news: Alavés vs Valencia

Deportivo Alavés

Sánchez Flores has three confirmed absentees ahead of Tuesday. Facundo Garcés is out for the rest of the season after suffering a cruciate ligament injury.

Mikel Rodríguez, a midfielder brought in during the summer window, carries the same diagnosis and also misses the remainder of 2026-27.

Aitor Mañas is sidelined with a head injury and is not expected back until late September.

Beyond those three, the squad is in good health, and the attacking options available are strong. Lucas Boyé has scored four La Liga goals in five appearances to lead the club’s scoring charts.

Toni Martínez, last season’s top scorer with 14 league goals, is fit and available alongside Boyé and Mariano Díaz, who has contributed three goals and three assists from four La Liga outings.

Valencia

The injury list at Valencia is the longest in the division. Sadiq, who scored the club’s only La Liga goal before sustaining his hamstring problem, will not return until early November.

César Tárrega and Mouctar Diakhaby are both absent until late September, Tárrega with a muscle injury, Diakhaby with a hamstring problem.

Diego López will not feature again until early January 2027 after rupturing his cruciate ligament, and Sergi Canós faces a similar timeline, with his own ACL injury keeping him out until early December.

Guido Rodríguez is listed as doubtful with a muscle problem, and Dimitri Foulquier has been flagged as a doubt due to physical discomfort.

Luis Rioja and José Copete are both returning to training from respective muscle and meniscus injuries, making their involvement from the start uncertain.

Star player spotlight: Lucas Boyé vs Hugo Duro

Star Player Spotlight
Lucas Boyé  |  Alavés ST 🇦🇷	Stat	Hugo Duro  |  Valencia ST 🇪🇸
11	La Liga goals 2025-26	10
4	La Liga goals 2026-27	0
4	La Liga apps 2026-27	4

The managers: Quique Sánchez Flores vs Carlos Corberán

Quique Sánchez Flores, 61, brings one of the most extensive managerial records in Spanish football to Vitoria-Gasteiz, with previous stints at Valencia, Atlético Madrid, Sevilla, Getafe and Espanyol, as well as a season at Watford in the Premier League.

He took over at Alavés in March 2026 and kept the club in La Liga through the final months of that season before launching this outstanding start to 2026-27.

Carlos Corberán has been sacked, and Valencia B coach Oscar Sanchez will take over as interim boss.

He had signed a new contract just three months ago that was supposed to run until 2028; the speed of his exit underlines both the scale of the early-season collapse and the instability that has defined Valencia’s operation under Peter Lim’s ownership for years.

Sánchez arrives with no experience of managing at La Liga level and with less than two days to prepare his squad for an away fixture against one of the division’s form sides. Whatever his ideas, the tools available to implement them are limited.

Tactical preview: Alavés vs Valencia

Sánchez Flores has Alavés in a high-pressing structure from a four-man defensive base, using Ángel Pérez’ forward runs from the right and Rebbach’s directness on the left to create the space that feeds Boyé centrally.

Carles Aleñá operates as the number ten linking midfield and attack, while the double pivot of Antonio Blanco and Ander Guevara provides enough defensive cover to allow the wide players to commit forward.

With Boyé, Toni Martínez and Mariano Díaz all available, Sánchez Flores also carries the option of shifting to a 4-4-2 and deploying two of them as a front pair, placing direct physical pressure on a makeshift Valencia central defensive pairing.

Valencia’s shape under Óscar Sánchez is unclear. His only preparation time between the announcement and kick-off, and the formation Corberán had been using will either be continued for familiarity or discarded as part of a new start.

Alavés vs Valencia predictions and betting tips

Alavés vs Valencia — Betting Tips Verify all odds live with your bookmaker before placing
Top Tip	Alavés to Win Third versus 20th. Alavés are unbeaten at home in La Liga this season and have scored 11 goals in five matches. Valencia have lost four on the bounce, sacked their manager on Sunday, and hand La Liga debut to an interim from the reserve team. The case for the hosts has only strengthened since the week began.
Value Bet	Alavés Clean Sheet Valencia’s only La Liga goal was scored by Sadiq, who is out until November. Hugo Duro has zero La Liga goals from four appearances. Diego López and Sergi Canós are sidelined with cruciate ligament injuries. A new interim coach with 48 hours of preparation time is not going to solve a goalscoring problem of this depth. The clean-sheet market carries real value, check live prices before placing.
Longshot	Lucas Boyé to Score First Four La Liga goals already this season, operating against a Valencia defence that has conceded ten goals in five matches and arrives with a new coaching set-up that has had no time to organise. Alavés press early and create first-half chances at Mendizorroza. Boyé opening the scoring is a realistic proposition at the expected price point.
Free Choice	Alavés to Score in Both Halves With Boyé, Toni Martínez and Mariano Díaz all available, Sánchez Flores has the attacking depth to maintain pressure across 90 minutes. The 5-2 win over Osasuna demonstrated how this attack sustains its output, against a Valencia side in institutional disarray, a second-half addition to any lead is a realistic punt at the right odds.

Score prediction: Alavés vs Valencia

Final Score Prediction  |  La Liga Matchday 6  |  Estadio de Mendizorroza, Vitoria-Gasteiz Alavés  2-0  Valencia

• Alavés have scored 11 La Liga goals in five matches and are unbeaten at Mendizorroza this season, winning both home games without conceding • Valencia’s only La Liga goal was scored by Sadiq before his hamstring injury, with the Super Eagles striker sidelined until November, no fit forward in the Valencia squad has scored in the league this season • The sacking of Corberán and the appointment of reserve-team interim Óscar Sánchez adds a layer of uncertainty to Valencia’s setup that is unlikely to benefit them in an away fixture against third-placed opposition • Lucas Boyé scored 11 La Liga goals last season and has continued that momentum into 2026-27, he enters this fixture as the standout attacking option on either side Likely scorers: Lucas Boyé; Mariano Díaz or Toni Martínez