Alavés vs Málaga: La Liga preview
By Elison · Fri 23 Oct 2026La Liga
Alavés
Málaga
Friday 23 October 2026 · 21:00
Read our prediction →Read the post-match analysisTrack Record
Two sides in very different places in La Liga meet on Friday night when Alavés host Málaga, with the hosts looking to arrest a difficult run of form against visitors who arrive in even deeper trouble.
Form guide
Alavés have not won in their last five matches, picking up just one point from a draw and suffering four defeats. Their two home games among those five brought losses to Valencia (0-1) and Atlético Madrid (1-2), while their three away games produced a defeat at Racing Santander (1-2), a goalless draw at Athletic Club and a 1-2 defeat at Celta Vigo most recently on 18 October. They have scored three times and conceded seven across those five matches, failing to score in two of them. That said, their La Liga season as a whole tells a different story at home: they have won three of their five home league games this season, scoring ten times in those fixtures and conceding five, at a rate of 2.00 goals scored and 1.00 conceded per home game. Seventh in La Liga with eleven points from nine games, Alavés remain a competitive outfit on their own ground even if their recent results have been poor.
Málaga's form over their last five matches has been no better. They have lost three and drawn two, failing to win any of them, and have conceded eleven goals while scoring five. In the three home games among their last five, Málaga drew with Espanyol (1-1) but lost to Real Sociedad (2-5) and Villarreal (1-3). In the two away games among their last five, Málaga drew at Celta Vigo (1-1) and lost at Getafe (0-1), failing to score in the latter. Málaga sit bottom of La Liga — twentieth — with four points from nine games, having yet to win a league match this season. They have conceded two goals per game on average both home and away in the league, and their season scoring rate stands at just 0.67 goals per game.
Head to head
Alavés hold a clear edge in the history between these two clubs. Across the last five competitive meetings, Alavés have won four times to Málaga’s one, with no draws, and eleven goals in total have been shared across those games. The most recent meeting, in May 2023, saw Alavés win 2-1 at home in the Spanish Segunda División. Before that, Málaga won 1-0 at home in December 2022, also in the Segunda División. The three La Liga meetings before that all went to Alavés: a 3-0 win at Málaga in May 2018, a 1-0 home win in December 2017, and a 2-1 victory away at Málaga in March 2017. Both teams scored in two of the last five meetings.
Team news
Alavés are without two players. Garcés is suspended, while Mikel Rodríguez misses out with an ankle injury; Rodríguez had made three appearances this season, starting two of them.
Málaga arrive with a longer list of absentees. Juan Cruz misses out with a muscle injury, having made seven appearances this season. Julen Lobete is ruled out with a knee injury. Joaquín Muñoz, who has started six of his nine appearances this season, is out with a calf injury. Diego Murillo and Ochoa are both ruled out with knee injuries.
What to watch
Alavés's home record in La Liga this season is the most relevant context for Friday's match. Over their last five matches across all competitions, they have averaged an xG of 1.09 per game while allowing an average xG against of 1.46 — numbers that reflect a side capable of creating chances but one that has been conceding at a rate that goes against their better home performances this season.
Málaga’s defensive record is the starkest figure coming into this match. Carrying an average xG against of 1.94 across their last five matches, they have not kept a single clean sheet in that spell. They have also averaged only 0.70 xG per game over those five matches, pointing to a side that has struggled to create as well as to defend. With the absentees ruled out, finding goals away from home will be an even greater challenge for Málaga.
The bookmakers make Alavés a 57% chance to win, with a draw at 26% and a Málaga win at 18%. Under 2.5 goals is marginally favoured at 54%, with over 2.5 at 46%, and the market is almost evenly split on whether both teams score, at 48% in favour and 52% against.
Closing thoughts
Friday night’s fixture brings together two sides short of confidence, but the gap between them in the league table and in defensive solidity at home makes Alavés the clear favourite. Whether their home form of recent weeks can reassert itself against a Málaga side weakened by injuries will define how the evening unfolds.
Earlier on Alavés and Málaga
Our previous coverage of both clubs.
