Malaga to be the latest ‘big club’ in La Liga to face drop

It is no real surprise scenario in Spain to see a team that has qualified for the Champions League since the Millennium spiral down the table to end up relegated from La Liga.

This occurrence has struck Deportiva La Coruna on two occasions in recent seasons, Celta Vigo, Real Sociedad and Villarreal, although all have since restored their position at Spain’s top table.

However, another team looks on the cusp of suffering the same fate, with Malaga appearing outstanding value at 8/1 to be relegated from La Liga this season.

Malaga are only one place outside of the relegation places through 13 games and this is despite the fact that the fixture list thus far has been relatively kind to them.

Of the six teams currently below them in the league standings, Malaga have already hosted five of them, which obviously means that any probable relegation six-pointers that await later in the season will be played on the road.

Furthermore, of the current top six in the table, Malaga have only faced two home or away, with their next three league outings against Athletic Bilbao, Villarreal and Getafe, who are all in the top six at present.

Given Malaga have yet to beat anyone above them in the table, points may prove hard to come by here and should their run of four defeats in six league outings worsen, their price for relegation must shorten.

They are not having a noticeable problem scoring goals or conceding too many, the summer departures of Manuel Pellegrini, leading defender Martin Demichelis, midfield enforcer Jeremy Toulalan, star playmaker Isco and reliable goalscorer Javier Saviola have clearly not helped their cause.

Any money received for this group has only been minimally been used to strengthen the squad too and so unless some funds are made available in January, Malaga’s position is unlikely to improve much over the remainder of the campaign.

It is certainly interesting that Malaga are only 9/1 to finish in the top six of La Liga this season, given their relegation price, as the drop seems far more likely than a prominent league finish.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.

Fancy a flutter? Sign up today to claim three £10 free bets when you bet £10.