Wednesday night sees the rapid return of Spain’s premier cup competition as the action in the Copa del Rey continues to come thick and fast. Second division Alcorcón face La Liga opposition for the second time this season as they welcome Alavés to Estadio Municipal de Santo Domingo for the first-leg of this quarter-final.
Having got the better of La Liga opposition once when toppling Espanyol in extra-time in the previous round, Alcorcón will be confident of going well once again, while Alavés, in avoiding all of the big-guns, will know that they’ve been awarded a wonderful opportunity to advance to the semis.
From a betting point of view, it is hard to avoid fancying the team from the top-flight here, despite the fact they’re playing this first-leg away from home. Mauricio Pellegrino’s team have impressed since gaining promotion to the top-flight and are fancied to have the required quality to put themselves in a favourable position ahead of the return fixture.
The basque team may have lost on the road at the weekend (albeit in somewhat unfortunate circumstances) but, on the whole, they’ve acquitted themselves very well away from home this season. Prior to that 1-0 defeat at the hands of Celta Vigo on Sunday, Alavés were unbeaten on their travels in seven matches and have already secured impressive victories at the likes of Villarreal and Barcelona this season.
Alcorcón may have knocked out Espanyol in the previous round, but, without disrespecting the second-tier side, the effort put in by the La Liga outfit was highly questionable and thus we shouldn’t really read too much into that result (3-2 aggregate). Considering just how lucky they’ve been to draw the only remaining second division team, Alavés aren’t likely to take anything for granted and are fancied to give their all in order reach the semi-finals of this competition for just the third time in their history and the first since 1998.
Domestically the hosts have performed well at home, although it has to be said that form against teams in the second division isn’t all that comparable. While Alavés certainly aren’t the biggest, nor the most fashionable, club in La Liga, they’re certainly a level above any of the teams Alcorcón are regularly facing in a division where they currently sit 19th.
It cannot be stressed enough just how good an opportunity this is for Mauricio Pellegrino’s side and they’re fancied to grab it with both hands. Backing the La Liga club to take the initiative in this first leg, at appealing odds of 19/10, is without a doubt the way to go.
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