Valencia’s Struggles in LaLiga: A Review of Their First Half Performance

Valencia CF finished the first half of the LaLiga season in 18th place, accumulating 17 points, just one point away from safety. The team’s performance is characterized by alarming statistics that highlight a new crisis in both gameplay and results. A key factor illustrating Valencia’s struggles this season is their lack of effectiveness in both offensive and defensive areas: they are scoring infrequently while conceding goals at an alarming rate.

In the first 19 matches of the league, Valencia managed to score only 18 goals (an average of 0.95 goals per match) while conceding 31 (an average of 1.63 goals per match). This dismal record explains why the team has only secured three victories, which has led to their precarious position in the league standings. Notably, according to data from Ciberche, a specialized database on Valencia CF, their goal difference of -13 is the second worst in the club’s history at this stage of the season.

The only season in which these figures were worse was in 1982-83 when the team was in danger of relegation until the final matchday. At that point, they had scored 19 goals (one goal per match), slightly better than this season, but had conceded 36, resulting in a -17 goal difference, the worst record in the club’s history at this stage.

It is worth noting that there have been seasons where Valencia conceded more than 31 goals, typically during the black-and-white television era, often correlated with high scoring rates as well.

In terms of negative goal difference rankings, the previous season (2024-25) also featured a concerning performance, although that season’s 12th match was played out of order due to adverse weather conditions under Corberán’s management. During the relegation season of 1985-86, Valencia had a goal difference of -11 after the first 19 matches, with 26 goals scored and 37 conceded.

A recent noteworthy season was 2007-08, when Ronald Koeman took over following Quique Flores’ dismissal. At the halfway point of that season, Valencia had a goal difference of -7 (with 22 goals scored and 29 conceded), placing them seventh. However, they struggled in the subsequent matches, ultimately needing to avoid relegation in the last five games, despite having won the Copa del Rey.