Anoeta loss leaves Rayo praying for miracle

Oyarzabal keeps shining

Right from kick-off, it was clear that Rayo Vallecano were hell-bent on grabbing three vital points at Anoeta, but Real Sociedad dug in and countered the visitors' initial dominance with a sucker punch. Jose Angel Crespo's laxness when bringing the ball out led to a corner that ultimately proved decisive. The kick was swung in, Rayo failed to clear properly and Mikel Oyarzabal seized upon the loose ball, catching Juan Carlos out with an excellent half-volley from just outside the box.

Missed chances for an equaliser

Paco Jemez's men's response to this blow was to push even further forward and step up the pressure. They succeeded in fashioning a number of opportunities, with Pablo Hernandez, Adrian Embarba and Jozabed all trying their luck but being unable to beat Geronimo Rulli in the home goal.

Bautista makes Rayo's task even tougher

The outfit from Vallecas, on the outskirts of Madrid, really found themselves with a mountain to climb shortly after the restart. Despite only scoring once in the first half, La Real had served notice that they had identified the space in between the visiting defenders and they exploited these gaps to devastating effect in the 50th minute. A textbook counter-attack from the Basque side culminated with Jon Bautista stroking home a fine finish and all but settling the encounter.

Javi Guerra gives visitors hope

Rayo's efforts finally bore fruit when Javi Guerra netted from distance. Carrying the ball into the final third, the forward unleashed a screamer that Rulli could do absolutely nothing about, stoking his side's hopes of a comeback.

Perseverance right to the end

It was all Rayo in the latter stages as the relegation battlers desperately sought out another goal. However, their edginess and lack of ideas hindered them and they did not create much of note besides a Manucho header, which forced Rulli into another decent save. The visitors kept going right to the final whistle but ultimately came away on the end of a demoralising defeat.