Elche vs Deportivo Alaves: Survival Six-Pointer Could Go Either Way

Last updated: 25 April 2026. Early odds are starting to filter through for this one and mate, the bookies know what they're doing here.

Right. Let's talk about a game that might not be glamorous but absolutely matters. Elche hosting Deportivo Alaves on Saturday 9 May 2026 at the Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero. Two teams in the bottom half of La Liga. One sitting 15th, one sitting 18th. Goals have been flying in at both ends all season. And honestly? I cannot wait.

Where Do These Two Actually Stand?

Look at the league table and it tells you everything you need to know about the mood going into this one. Elche are 15th. Not safe enough to be comfortable, not bad enough to feel doomed. That's the worst place to be mentally. You're always one bad run away from real trouble.

Deportivo Alaves though... they're 18th. That's a relegation place, depending on how the table shakes out around them. Every point between now and the end of the season is basically currency. Lose this and you're staring down a very dark tunnel.

So when people say "oh it's just a mid-table La Liga game" I want to sit them down and explain. This is not that. This is a proper dog fight and I am here for every second of it.

The Goals Are Coming. Trust Me on This.

Honestly, this is where it gets interesting. Look at the numbers for once and even I have to admit they're telling a story.

Elche have scored 42 goals this season and conceded 49. That is not a defence that keeps things tight. That's a back line that has basically decided attacking football is a lifestyle and they're just going to cope with the consequences.

Deportivo Alaves? Thirty-six goals scored, 48 conceded. Slightly more cautious going forward but still leaking goals at a serious rate. Both teams combined have conceded 97 goals this season. Ninety-seven! That's almost a century of goals going in at these two ends alone.

Marcus would probably pull up some xG stat right now... xG, by the way, stands for "expected goals" and is basically football's way of making you feel bad about a perfectly good shot... but even without the fancy numbers, you don't need a spreadsheet to see that both of these sides are open. Both of them score. Both of them concede. This match has goals in it.

I'm going big on this. Both Teams to Score is not a tip here, it's basically a description of what these clubs do every single weekend. Don't @ me.

Elche at Home: The Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero Factor

Look at the fixtures from Elche's perspective and there's something to work with here. Playing at the Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero gives them something. Home crowd, familiar turf, the slight psychological edge that comes with knowing your own ground.

And Elche are the higher-placed side. Three places and some breathing room separates them from their visitors. If Alaves are going to close that gap, they need to be taking points from games exactly like this one. Away day, hostile ground, desperate hosts. That's tough.

But here's the thing. Alaves need this more. That's what makes it dangerous for Elche. A team fighting to stay in the division finds something when the pressure is on. You've seen it a hundred times. The side with nothing to lose can become the most awkward opponent imaginable.

Deportivo Alaves: Danger From 18th

Right, let's be fair to Alaves here. Thirty-six goals scored from a side sitting 18th is not nothing. They're not just sitting back and parking the bus. They've got players who can hurt you. They're just also conceding at a rate that cancels out a lot of that good work.

The madness of their season is that they've been in loads of games. This is not a team being hammered every week and giving up. This is a team that keeps getting into shootouts and coming out on the wrong side. That's actually more dangerous in a one-off match than a side that just defends and nicks one. Because Alaves come to play. They just also happen to leave the door open when they do.

If they can tighten up defensively for 90 minutes... even just slightly... and take their chances when they come, they're absolutely capable of coming away from the Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero with something.

Jay's Early Acca Thoughts

We're 14 days out so the odds are just starting to settle, but here's where my head is at for the Saturday Special.

Elche to win, given home advantage and the slightly better league position, makes sense as a result pick. But it is not a banker. Nothing involving two teams with these defensive records is a banker. What IS tempting me is loading this into a Both Teams to Score leg because with 97 combined goals conceded between them, a clean sheet in this fixture would genuinely be a surprise.

A correct score punt around 2-1 to Elche is the kind of thing I'd lob a pound on just to have a reason to watch. You heard it here first. Back to the drawing board when it inevitably lands 3-2 but that's the game isn't it.

I reckon there are four or five goals in this match. Scenes if we get six. Don't rule it out.

The Verdict

Elche are at home, they're the higher-placed side, and they've got 42 goals in them this season. That's enough for me to lean their way. But Alaves are in a relegation spot and desperate teams find something. This is a game that could swing on one moment either way.

What I can say with confidence is this. If you want a tight, tense, cagey affair with minimal goals and loads of tactical discipline... you might want to watch something else on Saturday. Because based on everything these two clubs have shown us this season, this game is going to be chaos. Beautiful, stressful, completely unpredictable chaos.

And that is exactly what football is for.

Check back closer to kick-off for the full match preview, team news, and the confirmed Saturday Special acca selection.